Trump promises to restore gun freedoms in Pennsylvania speech

(The Center Square) – Former President Donald Trump said Friday he’d never limit gun rights for Americans amid surging crime, border insecurity and global instability – all side effects of a Democratic administration he deems corrupt and immoral.

"Now I stand before you with a very simple promise – your Second Amendment will always be safe with me as your president," he said. "When I'm back in the Oval Office no one will lay a finger on your firearms. It's not going to happen."

Trump’s pledge came during a 75-minute speech at the Great American Outdoor Show in Pennsylvania’s capital city of Harrisburg as he chases the Republican presidential nomination.

"Even as they turn America into a crime-ridden, gang-infested, terror-filled dumping ground, Joe Biden and his thugs will do everything in their power to confiscate your guns and annihilate your God-given right to self defense," he said.

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During the event hosted by the National Rifle Association, the former president recalled his efforts to protect and expand gun rights during his first term – including opening federal land for public hunting access, reversing an executive order that limited ownership rights for some Social Security recipients and withdrawing from the United Nations Arms Trade Treaty.

"Where basically they take your guns," Trump said.

He also committed to undoing a federal rule that recategorizes pistol braces as short-barreled rifles, compelling registration of the weapons lest owners face a felony charge punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Twenty-five states have challenged the rule in federal court.

Without his intervention, Trump painted a bleak picture.

"It means hundreds of more radical left judges waging a crusade against law-abiding gun owners and four more years of Joe Biden means a nonstop war on gun makers, dealers and sellers designed to put the entire industry right out of business," he said.

He didn't forget to skewer the Department of Justice’s decision against charging President Joe Biden for mishandling classified documents over his 40-plus years in office, either, calling his own infractions "peanuts comparatively."

Trump’s speech comes after a visibly upset Biden addressed the nation late Thursday to respond to a special counsel investigation that laid bare numerous examples of his memory loss.

The blockbuster special counsel report, while clearing Biden, sparked questions about the 81-year-old president’s mental fitness when it called him an “elderly man with a poor memory.”

Trump didn’t mince words on Friday, warning that the world teeters on the edge of World War III.

“We have a guy that can’t put two sentences together and he’s in charge of negotiations with Russia, with China, with North Korea,” he said.