When former Rep. Matt Gaetz introduced a bill to abolish the ATF, it was mostly a lost cause, at best. At worst is was little more than grandstanding to appease his base. The bill would have been amazing to see pass, but it was never going to happen. Even if the House would pass it, it was unlikely to get a vote in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
So, it did what so many other bills do. It died on the vine.
In January, though, things are going to change in Congress. Not only does it look like Republicans will hold onto their control of the House, depending on how things go in a special election in Florida to fill Gaetz’s seat–and do we really think a district that would elect Gaetz would turn blue?–might even be in a little stronger position. They also have control of the Senate and the White House. In short, they should be able to do a lot of things they want to.
And now, another bill has been introduced that would end the ATF.
Rep. Eric Burlison (R-Mo.) announced this week that he plans to introduce legislation that would abolish the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
“In January, I will be filing the bill that Matt Gaetz sponsored to abolish the ATF. Why? Because we’re fighting for you,” Burlison said in a video posted on X.
The Missouri Republican co-sponsored Gaetz’s “Abolish the ATF Act” last year, which sought to eliminate the federal agency over concerns that its rulemaking related to firearms amounts to “big government overreach.”
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“The ATF has been a disaster for the American people and our God-given Second Amendment rights,” he wrote on X. “It should absolutely be abolished.”
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The agency faced criticism from gun-rights advocates last year when it attempted to use the National Firearms Act of 1934 – the first federal law to impose limitations on gun ownership – to implement a rule banning pistol braces.
That’s only part of the story, though.
Yeah, the pistol brace rule is a bad one and it outraged a lot of people, but that’s far from the only thing the ATF has pulled over the years. One of the worst was the time they showed up at someone’s door to check and see if the gun he just bought was still in his possession. It apparently wasn’t an isolated incident.
We’ve also got the ATF inspector taking photographs of an FFL holder’s records with a personal phone.
Now, couple those abuses with the fact that the ATF has declared something of a jihad–at the Biden administration’s direction, admittedly–on law-abiding gun dealers with paperwork errors, treating them like criminals who willfully falsified documents, and it’s not hard to see why a lot of people figure the ATF needs to go.
That said, I don’t think Burlison will have much better luck than Gaetz did.
For one thing, Republicans ran on crime. While gun owners and gun rights advocates are well aware of the ATF’s abuses, your average voter isn’t. Ending a federal law enforcement agency will be spun as reducing the ability to enforce federal laws. Any increase in crime or even an insufficient drop will likely be tagged with the abolition of the ATF.
And that’s if everyone in the GOP agrees, which isn’t necessarily true. Many may not care for what the ATF has been doing, but they figure reform is a better option.
But, hypothetically, let’s say every Republican is on board. That means it would pass, right?
Nope.
Democrats still have enough numbers in the Senate to use the filibuster. While it was a great boon for gun rights, keeping a lot of measures off the table, now it’s time for the flip side of that.
So while I hope I’m wrong, I seriously doubt it.
Too bad, too, because ending the ATF would be absolutely glorious.
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