“I think given time to look at this and analyze it and see the system and framework we had before, I think people are going to say we don’t need to veer dramatically away from what was working in Missouri,” Nixon said.

In the House, the measure received 114 votes. In order to become law, it would need 109 votes to overcome a veto. The legislation received 24 votes in the Senate, one more than is needed to override.

Under current law, Missouri residents wanting to carry a concealed weapon must complete a gun safety training class and pass a criminal background check. If a person has a clean record and no history of mental illness, a local sheriff must issue a permit.

Nixon said instructors spend a significant period of the classroom time educating students not only on how to use firearms, but also when they are justified in using firearms to protect themselves or others.

“This classroom instruction is obviously important for public safety, and for the student as well, who needs to know when he may justifiably draw and fire his weapon at another human being,” he said in his veto message. “There are life-and-death scenarios reviewed in the classroom, as well as scenarios in which an individual is not justified in using lethal force.”