President Trump Donald John TrumpUS reimposes UN sanctions on Iran amid increasing tensions Jeff Flake: Republicans 'should hold the same position' on SCOTUS vacancy as 2016 Trump supporters chant 'Fill that seat' at North Carolina rally MORE told the Conservative Political Action Committee on Friday that if Democrats come into power, they will “take away your Second Amendment.”

“They'll take away your Second Amendment,” Trump said. “Remember that.”

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Speaking a little more than a week after the shooting at a Florida high school that left 17 dead one day after he offered support for modest gun control proposals, Trump offered some red meat for the conservative crowd and vowed to protect gun rights.

Cheered on by the crowd, Trump told the audience that they must come out in force to beat history and prevent the GOP from losing congressional seats in this fall's midterms to Democrats. The president's party typically loses seats in a midterm election.

"Don't be complacent,” Trump said. “If they get in, they will repeal your tax cuts, they will put judges in that you wouldn't believe, they'll take away your Second Amendment, which we will never allow to happen.”



Trump broke from the script to ask the crowd which one they would prefer to keep: tax cuts or gun rights. The crowd exploded with cheers about protecting their gun rights.



Trump is walking a fine line with conservatives and the National Rifle Association (NRA), one of his biggest backers during his presidential campaign.

The president is advocating for several new policies that put him at odds with the NRA, including expanded background checks, higher age restrictions on gun purchases and banning a device, known as a bump stock, that enables semi-automatic rifles to fire more rapidly.



But the president said he’s been in contact with the NRA and that they’ll get on board with some of his proposals.



“I can speak for all of the senators and congressmen and congresswomen, all the people in this room that are involved in this decision, that we will act, we will do something,” Trump said. “We will act.”



Democrats are eager to achieve broader gun control measures and say Trump’s proposals do not go far enough.



The president is also proposing arming some school officials so they can fight back against active shooters, which many gun control activists oppose.



“Why do we protect our airports and our banks, our government buildings, but not our schools?,” Trump said. “It is time to make our schools a much harder target for attackers. We don't want them in our schools. We don't want them. When we declare our schools to be gun free zones, it just puts our students in far more danger.”



The national debate over gun control has exploded over the last week following the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.

Students across the nation have staged walkouts, participated in town hall events and organized protests to demand action be taken on gun control.



The president met with families of victims and survivors of the shooting at the White House this week and has said the emotional testimony he heard from them has moved him to act.



“There are not enough tears in the world to express our sadness and anguish for her family, and for every family that has lost a precious loved one,” Trump said. “No family should ever save and ever have to go in and suffer the way these families have suffered. They have suffered beyond anything that I have ever witnessed.”