A spirited and self-deprecating Sarah Palin fired up 9,000 members of the National Rifle Association in Charlotte on Friday, bashing Hollywood, the media and animal-rights groups while warning that President Barack Obama would "gut" the Second Amendment.
The former vice presidential candidate led a parade of mostly Republican speakers who defended what actor Chuck Norris called "those 27 simple words" of the Second Amendment.
They made the NRA's Celebration of American Values Leadership Forum at Time Warner Cable Arena a pep rally for gun rights - with a decidedly partisan tilt.
Radio host Michael Reagan, son of President Ronald Reagan, decried what he called Washington's "radical leftist agenda." Former Ohio gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell said, "Mr. Obama's problem is the Constitution of the United States - it stands in his way."
But the star was Palin, who spoke for about 25 minutes.
"It's so good to be with all of you 'bitter clingers,'" she said to laughter, mocking Obama's 2008 description of "bitter" Pennsylvanians who cling to guns and religion.
"No need to load up the TelePrompTer," she continued, flashing a smudged palm. "I've got everything I need written on the palm of my hand."
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