By: Brendan Pringle  

Katie Pavlich left gun control advocates "on-guard" at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo Monday night with her rousing defense of the Second Amendment. 

Students packed the room to hear her speech, entitled "Fully Loaded: Why a Gun is a Girl's Best Friend."

Pavlich is the news editor for Townhall.com, a Fox News contributor and the New York Times bestselling author of Fast and Furious: Barack Obama's Bloodiest Scandal and Shameful Cover-Up which exposed the Obama administration's deliberate walking of 2000 guns across the border to Mexico.

In her speech, Pavlich articulately scored out the truth about assault weapons, concealed carry laws and the damaging impact of gun control. In addition, she presented a clear case for why the Second Amendment was put into place, why it should not be changed, and why gun ownership is a positive thing for Americans.

The event, organized by Cal Poly's conservative club, caused a buzz on campus in the days leading up to it, and generated some productive dialogue on the issue afterward.

Club president Elena Reynolds noted, "We felt like it's important to address the issue of gun control and gun rights after the shootings at Sandy Hook and all the smaller shootings. It's obviously something the student body is interested in."

Members had to combat the Left's dirty tricks in the week leading up to the event. They repeatedly had to replace stakes and flyers that inexplicably vanished throughout the campus, and many professors quietly refused to inform their students of the event. 

But the club didn't back down, and made effective use of the student newspaper and social media tools to attract students from all majors.

Reynolds said the backlash was expected, but also said she would encourage other conservative clubs to bring speakers to campus despite the resistance.

"You will most likely encounter hostility, but don't allow that to deter you. Conservative ideas need to be heard on campus in the name of diversity and tolerance. Make your university practice what they preach by hosting a YAF speaker."

Brendan Pringle is a Development Officer at Young America's Foundation's Reagan Ranch Center.