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Courting his sometime critics within the gun lobby, John McCain told the National Rifle Association on Friday that Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton would both undermine the rights of gun owners.
"If either Senator Clinton or Senator Obama is elected president, the rights of law-abiding gun owners will be at risk, my friends — and have no doubt about it," the Republican nominee-in-waiting told a crowd of several thousand.
McCain acknowledged he has been no darling of gun-rights advocates, having pushed through signature campaign finance legislation gun supporters say has muzzled free speech. The Arizona senator has also favored tighter restrictions for buying guns at gun shows.
"Those disagreements do not detract from my long record of support for the Second Amendment and the work we have done together to protect the rights of gun owners ... ," he said.
Nonetheless, McCain said he expected the votes of gun owners in his general election campaign against either Obama or Clinton, the remaining Democratic presidential contenders.
Earlier, after visiting a gun store in St. Albans, W. Va., McCain said the only gun controls he favors are limits to keep guns from people with criminal backgrounds or indications of mental problems