Presidential candidate Joe Biden dismissed a quote from Founding Father and Declaration of Independence writer Thomas Jefferson, asserting that AK-47s wouldn't protect from tyranny.

"Those who say 'The tree of liberty is watered with the blood of patriots,' a great line, well, guess what? The fact is, if you’re going to take on the government, you need an F-15 with Hellfire missiles," the former vice president said during a New Hampshire campaign rally on Sunday. "There is no way an AK-47 is going to take care of you."

The "line" Biden referred to comes from a letter Jefferson wrote to British diplomat William S. Smith in 1787, in which he discussed Shays' Rebellion.

"What country can preserve it's liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants," his letter reads.

Though he personally opposed the rebellion, Jefferson wrote to James Madison, who originally proposed the Second Amendment, that the rebellion did "not appear to threaten serious consequences."

Biden, 77, was speaking on the issue of gun control to voters, arguing for a limit to the right to bear arms.

"If you are incapable of thinking, if you are mentally ill, you can't own a weapon. If you are a terrorist, you can't own a weapon. You shouldn't be able to own a weapon if you are an abuser," he said.

Additionally, Biden said a ban of "assault weapons" is consistent with limiting the kinds of weapons a citizenry may possess, arguing: "You can't own a machine gun. You can't own a bazooka. You can't own an M1 tank. No matter how much money you have, you can limit the kinds of weapons that are able to be owned."