I hate to break it to you fear-mongering life-time NRA members,

[spin]

5. I feel Mitt Romney would have been able to force the Assault Weapons Ban through Congress ...

and would have been happy to sign it into law. Obama will have a very difficult time and most experts feel the new AWB will not even pass in the Senate.

Let's look at some past Republican Presidents:

Richard Nixon:

We need gun laws stricter than the Brady Bill

Unless we adopt and enforce strict gun control laws--ones much tougher than the Brady Bill--we will never succeed in stemming the violence spawned by the drug trade.
Source: Seize the Moment, by Richard Nixon, p.294-295 , Jan 15, 1992
http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Richard_Nixon_Gun_Control.htm

Gerald Ford

Ban Saturday Night Specials, but no regulations nor licenses

I had always opposed federal registration of guns or the licensing of gun owners, and as President, I hadn't changed my views. At the same time, I recognized that handguns had played a key role in the increase of violent crime. Not all handguns-just those that hadn't been designed for sporting purposes. I asked Congress to ban the manufacture and sale of these "Saturday night specials."
Source: A Time To Heal, by Gerald Ford, p.292 , Jun 19, 1975
http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Gerald_Ford_Gun_Control.htm

Ronald Reagan

I'm an NRA member & I support the Brady Bill

(In a 1991 speech, Reagan said): "I'm a member of the NRA. And my position on the right to bear arms is well known. But I support the Brady bill and I urge the Congress to enact it without delay. It's just plain common sense that there be a waiting period [7 days] to allow local law enforcement officials to conduct background checks on those who wish to buy a handgun."
http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ronald_Reagan_Gun_Control.htm

George H. W. Bush

In 1989, then President George H.W. Bush issued an executive order halting the importation of some semi-automatic firearms after a mass school shooting Stockton, California. He based his executive order on the 1968 Gun Control Act and used it to ban the shipment of what could be considered “assault weapons” unless they were used for sporting purposes. (Question: Did the free republic cease to exist then?)
http://www.politicususa.com/presidents-bush-clinton-executive-orders-reform-gun-laws.html

George W Bush

Would sign, but would not push, gun restrictions

Bush has said he would sign a law requiring trigger locks with handgun sales but wouldn’t push such legislation. Bush has endorsed outlawing the import of certain high-capacity ammunition clips. Bush also would raise the legal age for handgun purchases from 18 to 21.
Source: Judy Holland, Hearst Newspapers , Apr 14, 2000
Ban automatic weapons & high-capacity ammunition clips

Supports stronger enforcement of existing gun laws, would provide more funding for aggressive gun law enforcement programs such as Project Exile in Richmond, Virginia
Supports requiring instant background checks at gun shows by allowing gun show promoters to access the instant check system on behalf of vendors
Supports law-abiding American’s constitutional right to own guns to protect their families and home
Supports the current ban on automatic weapons
Supports banning the importation of foreign made, “high-capacity” ammunition clips
Supports voluntary safety locks
Opposes government mandated registration of all guns owned by law abiding citizens
Source: GeorgeWBush.com: ‘Issues: Policy Points Overview’ , Apr 2, 2000
http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/George_W__Bush_Gun_Control.htm

***

And how about the last Republican Candidate for POTUS?

Mitt Romney


2002: I will not chip away at MA's tough gun laws

In 1994 Romney had supported firearms-control measures opposed by the National Rifle Association: the so-called Brady Bill, which restricted the sale of handguns, and the assault weapons ban. During the 1994 senatorial campaign he had taunted: "That's not going to make me the hero of the NRA." He reinforced his support for these measures when he ran for governor in 2002, when he promised not to chip away at the Commonwealth's tough gun laws. Now as a presidential candidate, Romney presented himself disingenuously as a lifetime member of the NRA and a hunter of "varmints," which prompted the acerbic Boston Globe columnist Joan Vennochi to write: "Leave it to Mitt Romney to shoot himself in the foot with a gun he doesn't own."
Source: An Inside Look, by R.B.Scott, p.144-145 , Nov 22, 2011
http://www.ontheissues.org/2012/Mitt_Romney_Gun_Control.htm