CHARLESTON, S. C. - Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are clashing early on guns in a Democratic presidential debate blocks from where nine people were killed by a white gunman at a historic black church in June.

Sanders says Clinton's assertion that he's a tool of the gun lobby is "disingenuous" and notes that he has a lifetime rating of a D- from the National Rifle Association.

He says he's always supported bans on military style assault weapons, though Clinton counters that he voted several times against the Brady Bill that eventually became law under her husband, former President Bill Clinton.

Hillary Clinton has hammered Sanders for weeks for voting effectively to shield gun manufacturers from legal liability in gun deaths. Sanders says the bill was unfair to independent gun retailers, whom he has said don't deserve to be sued. He says he would support legislation that would target manufacturers specifically. Sanders also argues that as a "senator from a rural state that has virtually no gun control" he's in an "excellent position to bring people together on the politically sensitive issue."