Romney joined NRA right before making presidential bid
1:01 PM Mon, Feb 19, 2007 | Permalink
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Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, who presents himself as a staunch ally of gun owners, has acknowledged he joined the National Rifle Association just months before announcing his candidacy. The former Massachusetts' governor said Sunday during an interview on ABC's "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" that he'd signed up for a lifetime membership with the NRA "within the last year." Romney spokesman Kevin Madden told The Boston Globe that Romney joined the NRA in August, and that the decision was not a ploy to attract conservative voters. "He joined the NRA because, like millions of Americans, he supports the group's advocacy of the Second Amendment and its commitment to education programs promoting the safe use of firearms by law-abiding citizens," Madden said. "I would argue not many Americans care when you join, but why you join, and I think I've made that clear." Romney has publicly opposed NRA-supported measures. For example, he stood up to the NRA during his unsuccessful run for the Senate in Massachusetts in 1994. Romney then told the Boston Herald he supported tough gun control laws such as the assault rifles ban and the Brady law. "That's not going to make me the hero of the NRA. I don't line up with a lot of special interest groups," he said at the time. After forming his presidential campaign exploratory committee in January, Romney toured a hunting and outdoor trade show in Orlando, Fla., with NRA executive vice president Wayne LaPierre. Romney reminisced about shooting rabbits during his boyhood days and said, "I'm proud to be among the many decent, law-abiding men and women who safely use firearms." Some conservatives already have raised questions about Romney's shift to the right on issues such as abortion and gay rights during the second half of his single term as Massachusetts governor. Romney has responded by pointing to his time as governor, during which he was a vocal supporter of a constitutional ban on gay marriage. He's also said he became an abortion opponent two years ago during legislative debate on stem cell research, during which he became convinced legalized abortion had cheapened human life. -- The Associated Press 
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