As each party does every four years as part of their national conventions, this week, the Republican Party adopted its platform detailing the general beliefs and policy positions of the party.
Included in the 2012 Republican platform is a strong statement of support for the individual right to keep and bear arms, which goes beyond a generic statement of support for the Second Amendment and includes specific statements on key issues of concern to gun owners.
Here is the text on the Second Amendment included in the platform:
The Second Amendment: Our Right to Keep and Bear Arms
We uphold the right of individuals to keep and bear arms, a right which antedated the Constitution and was solemnly confirmed by the Second Amendment. We acknowledge, support, and defend the law-abiding citizen's God-given right of self-defense. We call for the protection of such fundamental individual rights recognized in the Supreme Court's decisions in District of Columbia v. Heller and McDonald v. Chicago affirming that right, and we recognize the individual responsibility to safely use and store firearms. This also includes the right to obtain and store ammunition without registration. We support the fundamental right to self-defense wherever a law-abiding citizen has a legal right to be, and we support federal legislation that would expand the exercise of that right by allowing those with state-issued carry permits to carry firearms in any state that issues such permits to its own residents. Gun ownership is responsible citizenship, enabling Americans to defend their homes and communities. We condemn frivolous lawsuits against gun manufacturers and oppose federal licensing or registration of law-abiding gun owners. We oppose legislation that is intended to restrict our Second Amendment rights by limiting the capacity of clips or magazines or otherwise restoring the ill-considered Clinton gun ban. We condemn the reckless actions associated with the operation known as "Fast and Furious," conducted by the Department of Justice, which resulted in the murder of a U.S. Border Patrol Agent and others on both sides of the border. We applaud the Members of the U.S. House of Representatives in holding the current Administration's Attorney General in contempt of Congress for his refusal to cooperate with their investigation into that debacle. We oppose the improper collection of firearms sales information in the four southern border states, which was imposed without congressional authority.
The inclusion of specific issues, such as the right to self-defense, opposition to the semi-auto ban, and support for interstate Right-to-Carry reciprocity makes this the most pro-Second Amendment position ever included in a major party platform. The NRA commends the GOP for taking a strong and unambiguous stance in support of our fundamental, individual right to keep and bear arms.
GOP Adopts Strongly Pro-Gun Platform

Friday, August 31, 2012
Wednesday, February 12, 2025
U.S. Representatives Riley Moore (R-WV-02), Richard Hudson (R-NC-09), and Andy Barr (R-KY-06) have introduced H.R. 1181, the Protecting Privacy in Purchases Act. This crucial legislation would prohibit credit card companies from tracking constitutionally protected purchases ...
Tuesday, February 18, 2025
Lawmakers in Illinois have a long track record of irrational gun bans and restrictions based on the idea that public safety is best served by disarming criminals and law-abiding citizens alike, even if that means ...
Friday, February 7, 2025
Today, the White House announced a new Executive Order to protect and expand the Second Amendment rights of all law-abiding Americans. This is the first action taken by President Donald J. Trump to carry through ...
Monday, February 10, 2025
A couple weeks ago, we wrote about anti-gun activist David Hogg campaigning to be a Vice Chair for the Democratic National Committee (DNC). We (somewhat) jokingly endorsed his candidacy, as it would make abundantly clear that ...
Monday, February 24, 2025
“Lawfare” is the misuse of the legal system to damage political or business opponents, either through frivolous lawsuits in which the cost of defending becomes too much to bear or through the pursuit of political ...
More Like This From Around The NRA
