US gun lobby endorses Romney, criticises Obama

FISHERSVILLE, Virginia (AFP) - The National Rifle Association (NRA), the biggest gun rights lobby in the United States, announced on Thursday its endorsement of Republican Mitt Romney for president.

"I am proud to have their support for my candidacy, and when I am president, I will do all in my power to defend and protect the right of all law-abiding Americans to keep and bear arms," Mr Romney said in a statement.

NRA Political Victory Fund chair Chris Cox said it was important to have "a friend of our Second Amendment freedoms and hunting heritage in the White House," referring to the part of the US Constitution which enshrines the right to bear arms.

"Today we live in an America... led by a president who mocks our values, belittles our faith, and is threatened by our freedom," said Mr Cox in Fishersville, Virginia, where Mr Romney and his running mate Paul Ryan, a congressman and avid hunter, attended a rally.