"We need a President who will stand up for the rights of hunters, sportsmen, and those seeking to protect their homes and their families. President Obama has not; I will," he said.
"If we are going to safeguard our Second Amendment, it is time to elect a president who will defend the rights President Obama ignores or minimizes," Romney added. "And I will protect the Second Amendment rights of the American people."
Democrats shot back at Romney before his speech was even delivered.
“The president's record makes clear the he supports and respects the second amendment, and we'll fight back against any attempts to mislead voters. Mitt Romney is going to have difficulty explaining why he quadrupled fees on gun owners in Massachusetts then lied about being a lifelong hunter in an act of shameless pandering," Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said in a statement this morning. "That varmint won't hunt.”
Romney's history with second amendment and gun-ownership issues is a colorful one, from saying "I don't line up with the NRA," during his 1994 senate campaign, to being forced to backtrack on his skill as a hunter in 2008, ultimately admitting he only shot "small varmints." This campaign cycle, Romney has laughed about his lack of skill as a hunter, including with comedian Jeff Foxworthy in Alabama, whom he joked could help him figure out which end of the rifle to point.
The Republican frontrunner's speech also came, though, at one of the biggest recent flashpoints for gun rights in recent memory. The Trayvon Martin shooting in Florida has sparked nationwide coverage of "stand your ground" laws -- the self-defense law under which George Zimmerman, the man charged with second degree murder in Martin's death, is mounting his criminal defense.
Romney didn't address those laws in his speech, though his campaign said in a briefing with reporters on Friday morning that the former Massachusetts governor would defer to states to determine their own laws on that matter.
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/20 ... peech?liteinteresting. he only said "gun" once, and did not even address the trayvon martin case and stand your ground laws...he can not take a firm position on that, so he is obviously pandering and whoring himself out. just look at his inconsistent past on gun rights...

he talked about freedom in general, pandering to the simpletons in the audience...