FACTBOX: Reaction to Supreme Court gun ruling

(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, for the first time in the country's history, that individual Americans have the right to own guns for personal use, and struck down a strict gun control law in Washington.

Following is some reaction to the ruling:

PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH

"As a longstanding advocate of the rights of gun owners in America, I applaud the Supreme Court's historic decision today confirming what has always been clear in the Constitution: the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear firearms.

"I also agree with the Supreme Court's conclusion that the D.C. firearm laws violate this fundamental constitutional right. The District of Columbia should now swiftly move to ensure that its residents' rights under the Second Amendment are fully protected."

DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE BARACK OBAMA

"I have always believed that the Second Amendment protects the right of individuals to bear arms, but I also identify with the need for crime-ravaged communities to save their children from the violence that plagues our streets through common sense, effective safety measures.

"The Supreme Court has now endorsed that view, and while it ruled that the D.C. gun ban went too far, Justice Scalia himself acknowledged that this right is not absolute and subject to reasonable regulations enacted by local communities to keep their streets safe.

"Today's ruling, the first clear statement on this issue in 127 years, will provide much-needed guidance to local jurisdictions across the country.

"As president, I will uphold the constitutional rights of law-abiding gun-owners, hunters, and sportsmen."

"Today's decision reinforces that if we act responsibly, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our communities and our children safe."

REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE JOHN MCCAIN

"I applaud this decision as well as the overturning of the District of Columbia's ban on handguns and limitations on the ability to use firearms for self-defense.

"Unlike Senator Obama, who refused to join me in signing a bipartisan amicus brief, I was pleased to express my support and call for the ruling issued today."

"Unlike the elitist view that believes Americans cling to guns out of bitterness, today's ruling recognizes that gun ownership is a fundamental right -- sacred, just as the right to free speech and assembly.

"This ruling does not mark the end of our struggle against those who seek to limit the rights of law-abiding citizens. We must always remain vigilant in defense of our freedoms."

PAUL HELMKE, PRESIDENT OF THE BRADY CAMPAIGN TO PREVENT GUN

VIOLENCE

"The ... decision ... will most likely embolden criminal defendants, and ideological extremists, to file new legal attacks on existing gun laws. With the help of the Brady Center's legal team, those attacks can, and must, be successfully resisted in the interest of public safety.

"After the ... ruling, as before, approximately 80 Americans will continue to die from guns every day. Our weak or nonexistent gun laws contribute to the thousands of senseless gun deaths and injuries in this country that occur each year. We must continue to fight for sensible gun laws to help protect our families and our communities."

NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION VICE PRESIDENT WAYNE LAPIERRE

"This is a great moment in American history. It vindicates individual Americans all over this country who have always known that this is their freedom worth protecting.

"Our founding fathers wrote and intended the Second Amendment to be an individual right. The Supreme Court has now acknowledged it. The Second Amendment as an individual right now becomes a real permanent part of American Constitutional law."

WASHINGTON MAYOR ADRIAN FENTY

"I'm disappointed in the court's ruling and believe introducing more handguns into the district will mean more handgun violence.

"But I want to emphasize that at this moment, our gun laws remain in effect. It may be several weeks before there are changes to announce.

"In the meantime, I have directed the Metropolitan Police Department to implement an orderly process for allowing qualified citizens to register handguns for lawful possession in their homes."

MILES HALL, OWNER OF H&H GUN RANGE IN OKLAHOMA CITY:

"I honestly think that the outright bans are going to disappear. I think they will all be challenged. Once the Supreme Court has ruled there is an individual right to own a gun, I think all those are going to disappear."

"What we want is for law-abiding citizens to be able to protect themselves. Period."

(Reporting by Deborah Charles and Jeremy Pelofsky in Washington, Ben Fenwick in Oklahoma City; Editing by Patricia Zengerle)