It's best not to answer those direct questions directly. Especially when people push you for an answer. After all you don't want some dumb prosecutor making cause célèbre out of you simply because you honestly said "yes, I'll shoot to kill".
If you want to conclude that means he's a coward that's your opinion. But he may be wondering what might be made of his remarks. At least he's got it, so you'll find out what he's really made of should the time come, god forbid. I suspect if he were truly a committed liberal he wouldn't be carrying.
“But he may be wondering what might be made of his remarks.”
This was in my house with just the three of us there. He meant what he said.