NRA in Louisville: Mongiardo avoids referencing Obama, while Rove swings away

Karl Rove at today's NRA Leadership Forum

LOUISVILLE -- Kentucky Lt. Gov. Daniel Mongiardo (D-Hazard) was the first elected official to speak at today's National Rifle Association leadership forum, keeping his remarks focused on hunting and outdoors activity with firearms, but also discussed the attitudes of those who support certain gun control legislation.

"It's my belief that all discrimination has at its base ignorance," said Mongiardo. "Those who are against the freedom to own guns, most of them really live in cities where they weren’t exposed to it at a young age."

Mongiardo called for "more education to remove discrimination because of lack of familiarity."

Mongiardo - who recently endorsed presidential candidate and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) -- did not reference his choice, during his speech.

Thus far through the leadership forum, Obama has been the favored target of many speakers. The NRA is distributing hundreds of stickers that read "I'm a 'bitter' gun owner, and I vote," referencing Obama's now-infamous comments about rural working-class voters.

"It's not surprising, then, they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or anti-pathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations," said Obama at a San Fransisco fundraiser in early April.

Other speakers during the forum have slammed Obama, including former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove.

Rove focused nearly all of his remarks on Obama, and relativley none on his opponent, U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.).

Rove riffed on the "bitter" comments for an extended period of time before accusing Obama of only recognizing the "individual right to keep and bear arms" for a short period of time.

"You probably thought you shot trap and skeet because it was fun and competitive, but according to Barack Obama, that’s not true," said Rove.

"What we cling to is the fundamental right to keep and bear arms in the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America," continued Rove.

"If you are going to ask Americans for one of their most precious possessions -- their vote -- don’t be dismissive and don’t be condescending and then expect to get it," said Rove.

Rove also pointed to newspaper coverage of Obama's earlier political career, saying Obama once "pledged to ban sale or transfer of all forms of semi-automatic weapons."

"We know what Senator Obama will say when we raise his second Amendment views ... He will say its divisive," said Rove.

"It is divisive to undermine the Second Amendment, it is divise to undermine the Constitution of the United States," said Rove.

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