By KWMU
St. Louis, MO – The National Rifle Association said Thursday it will hold its 2007 convention in St. Louis.
The group was to meet in Columbus, Ohio at that time. But it pulled out last month to protest the city's new ban on assault weapons.
"The Second Amendment stands at the gateway of freedom and there is no better place to celebrate freedom than St. Louis," said NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre.
The 2007 meeting will be the NRA's 136th annual gathering. About 60,000 NRA members attended this year's convention in Houston.