Senator David Leyonhjelm has labelled Australia "a nation of victims" and discouraged the United States from following Australia's example on gun control.

The Liberal Democrat made the comments in an interview with the National Rifle Association of America (NRA) which was screened on YouTube.

Key points: Senator David Leyonhjelm urges US not to adopt Australia's gun control laws

Senator David Leyonhjelm urges US not to adopt Australia's gun control laws Labels Australia a "nation of victims" in an interview with the NRA

Labels Australia a "nation of victims" in an interview with the NRA Says tighter gun control laws have not made "slightest bit of difference"

His interview appears in a clip attacking presidential hopeful and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton over her pro-gun control stance and comes as the race to the White House heats up.

Senator Leyonhjelm told the NRA that Australia should not be a model for gun control, stating that John Howard's 1996 gun legislation - pushed through in the wake of the Port Arthur massacre - had made "no difference".

"We are a nation of victims," he said.

"You cannot own a gun for self defence ... the criminals still have guns. There's a very vigorous black market for guns, so it's not made the slightest bit of difference.

"If you want a gun, you can get one."

Senator Leyonhjelm has pushed for the rights of gun owners in Australia since his election in 2013 and recently negotiated a 12-month sunset clause on a ban on importing the Adler lever-action shotgun.

Mr Howard, whose 1996 ban on automatic and semi-automatic weapons prompted Senator Leyonhjelm's departure from the Liberal Party, has said he does not believe Australians want to see looser restrictions.

"If the Government ends up letting this [shotgun] in, and not treating it as I think it should be on the evidence available to me at the moment - treated as akin to an automatic or semi-automatic - then I would be very critical of that," Mr Howard said at a Gun Control Australia function in Sydney earlier this year.

"That would be a huge mistake. I don't think a great majority of Australians want to see a weakening of gun laws."