President Donald Trump (Screenshot of C-SPAN video)

(CNSNews.com) – President Donald Trump pledged to never infringe on the 2nd Amendment during a speech at the National Rifle Association’s meeting in Atlanta, Ga., on Friday.

“We all took an oath to preserve and protect the Constitution of the United States, and that means defending the 2nd Amendment. So let me make a simple to every one of the freedom-loving Americans in the audience today: as your president, I will never, ever infringe on the right of the people to keep and bear arms – never, ever,” Trump said.

“Freedom is not a gift from government. Freedom is a gift from God,” he added.

Trump said he was “proud to receive the NRA’s earliest endorsement in the history of the organization” and also “proud to be the first sitting president to address the NRA Leadership Forum since our wonderful Ronald Reagan in 1983.”

“When I spoke to this forum last year, our nation was still mourning the loss of a giant, a great defender of the Constitution – Justice Antonin Scalia. I promised that if elected, I would nominate a justice who would be faithful and loyal to the Constitution. I even went one step further and publicly presented a list of 20 judges from which I would make my selection, and that’s exactly what we did,” Trump said.

The president kept his promise by nominating Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.

“For the first time in the modern political era, we have confirmed a new justice in the 1st 100 days. The last time that happened was 136 years ago in 1881,” Trump said.

“We’ve also taken action to stand up for America’s sportsmen. On their very last full day in office, the previous administration issued an 11th hour rule to restrict the use of lead ammunition on certain federal lands,” Trump said, but that rule was eliminated on Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s first day in office.

“We’ve also moved very quickly to restore something gun owners care about very, very much. It’s called the rule of law. We have made clear that our administration will always stand with the incredible men and women of law enforcement. In fact, countless members of law enforcement are also members of the NRA, because our police know that responsible gun ownership saves lives and that the right of self-defense is essential to public safety,” the president said.

“Our police and sheriffs also know that when you ban guns, only the criminals will be armed,

Trump said.

“For too long, Washington has gone after law-abiding gun owners, while making life easier for criminals, drug dealers, traffickers, and gang members. MS-13 … it’s not pleasant for them anymore folks,” he said. “We are protecting the freedoms of law-abiding Americans, and we are going after the criminal gangs and cartels that prey on our innocent citizens, and we are really going after them.”

The president praised Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a someone who believes in law and order and “spent his entire career fighting crime, supporting the police and defending the 2nd Amendment.”

“He’s going after the drug dealers who are peddling their poison all over our streets and destroying our youth. He’s going after the gang members who threaten our children, and he’s fully enforcing our immigration law in all 50 states, and you know what? It’s about time,” Trump said.