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NRA chief stresses common ground with McCain
By BRUCE SCHREINER
Associated Press
May 14, 2008

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- A top official of the National Rifle Association said Republican John McCain has been a reliable ally of gun owners despite divisions with the powerful lobbying group on some issues.

''We've had our disagreements, everybody knows it,'' NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday. ''I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on those. We're not foolish enough to ignore the vast areas of agreement in which John McCain has been a friend to gun owners.''

McCain is scheduled to address the NRA convention Friday in Louisville, Ky.

The likely Republican presidential nominee has voted against a ban on assault-type weapons, but has broken with the NRA in favoring a requirement for background checks at gun shows. McCain also has voted to shield gun-makers and dealers from civil suits.

''It was so much red tape there would never be another gun show, which is why the bill was voted down in Congress,'' LaPierre said of the background checks.

LaPierre also criticized the campaign finance law championed by McCain, calling it a form of ''speech restrictions.''

But his harshest words were directed at the Democratic candidates. LaPierre accused Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama of ''mouthing pro-Second amendment words and pandering to gun owners'' on the campaign trail.

''They try to say one thing in the heartland of the country and they vote another way back in Washington,'' he said. ''And I just think the public sees through it.''

LaPierre was reluctant to talk about former Republican Rep. Bob Barr, a staunch gun-rights advocate who is seeking the Libertarian Party's presidential nomination.

LaPierre said it's premature to talk about Barr because ''it's not even certain he's going to be on any ballots.''

When pressed about Barr, who has been an NRA board member, LaPierre said, ''Bob has been a Second Amendment supporter in Congress.'' Barr, who quit the Republican Party two years ago, will seek the Libertarian nomination at the party's national convention later this month.

LaPierre said one of the biggest issues for the NRA is the prospect of the next president making nominations to the Supreme Court. The NRA is closely watching the high court's review of a challenge to a handgun ban in Washington, D.C.

LaPierre argued that the 4-million-member-strong NRA has shown its political muscle in past presidential and congressional elections.

''It's simply bad politics to be on the wrong side of the Second Amendment at election time,'' he said.

Paul Helmke, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said the NRA criticized McCain in the past on campaign finance and gun show background checks. If the NRA endorses McCain, Helmke said it will show ''how politics has changed. The NRA's high tide has already passed and the tide is moving away from them.''

Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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