The White House announced last week that President Joe Biden would withdraw the nomination of David Chipman as Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). This was a victory for gun owners and the firearm industry. The Chipman defeat does not mean that the Biden gun control agenda is over. Not even close.
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REPORT: White House to Reject David Chipman from ATF Consideration
Chipman Wins Marks Next Chapter
Chipman was not qualified to lead the agency of 5,000 people. Chipman is a gun control lobbyist and has previously testified before Congress calling for bans on Modern Sporting Rifles, (MSRs), and enacting age-based gun prohibitions. He also advocated for national firearm transfers delay periods. Chipman also had issues. Chipman had other issues. He denigrated first-time gun purchasers as apocalypse preppers and Tiger King. After his confirmation hearing, allegations of racially-tinged remarks toward other ATF agents surfaced.
Chipman is not out of the running for the ATF job, but that doesn’t mean he has given up. It doesn’t mean that anyone should expect the White House to abandon its gun control agenda. It is important to recall what the Biden administration has already done, what they promised to do, and what gun control will require. This is also the first year for the Biden administration. There are still three years until voters have the opportunity to demand that a president respects gun rights.
Another nominee
Jen Psaki, White House spokesperson, didn’t give a timeframe, but said that the Biden administration doesn’t plan to leave the ATF director’s job in the hands an acting director. Psaki stated, “We certainly would at a suitable time.” It’s not known when or who else there will be a second nominee.
Politico reported that the White House’s Domestic Policy Council (and Office of Public Engagement) called gun control allies to report on Chipman’s withdrawal. They were not committed to naming a replacement nominee. According to the report, Biden administration officials didn’t work on a Plan B because they assumed they wouldn’t face opposition from Democratic senators. Joe Manchin (D.W.V. Jon Tester (D-Mont. Sen. Angus King (Italian), who caucuses alongside Democrats. Ultimately, Sen. King pushed back against The White House, sinking Chipman’s nomination.
NSSF agrees that the bureau needs a confirmed Director. NSSF has supported ATF director nominees in the past including President George W. Bush’s nominee Michael Sullivan, President Barack Obama’s ATF Director B. Todd Jones, and President Donald Trump’s nominee Chuck Canterbury. NSSF is looking for a director who will faithfully serve the ATF’s mission of overseeing the firearm industry and administering federal firearm regulations. Chipman was not that person. He would have been gun control’s inside man.
Gun Control Official
Chipman isn’t always out in the cold. Politico reported that the Department of Justice (DOJ), is looking at creating a senior advisor position for Chipman. This means that Chipman is still on President Biden’s radar to help him with his gun control agenda. Gun control groups are demanding that President Biden create a Cabinet-level office with an advisor, without the need for Senate confirmation.
This is not a new idea, but it has gained support from gun control advocates. Guns Down America and March for Our Lives as well as Newtown Action Alliance, Survivors Empowered, and March for Our Lives seek to meet with White House officials to demand such an office. The White House has so far refused to make such an office possible.
A White House aide said to Politico that there is a White House office on gun policy. It is called the Domestic Policy Council. They said that White House staffers “are working every single day on gun violence and have made it a top priority,” so they feel like there is an office on gun violence.
Fighting Infringements
Biden already has other gun-control initiatives in motion. Two DOJ-initiated ATF rules were published. One to redefine frames and receivers, and another to reclassify AR-pistols with brace-equipped ARs as short barrel rifles. Both could endanger the firearm industry and infringe on law-abiding citizens’ rights to keep and bear arm. NSSF submitted comments to both proposals (frames & receivers comments here and brace comments here), pointing out that the ATF does not have the authority to alter definitions or classifications without Congressional approval. The proposed rules would create a new crime and only Congress can define federal crimes.
Conversation with the CDC on Re-Entry
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, Director at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), announced that the agency will be re-investigating firearms. The CDC has never stopped studying firearms. Despite gun control advocates’ claims, they have never been barred. The CDC cannot use gun studies to promote gun control measures. Dr. Walensky stated that she is interested in bringing gun owners into the CDC’s discussions. However, this sincerity is questionable. The Real Solutions campaign showed that the firearm industry had achieved results, which have been cited by both the National Safety Council (NSC) and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) for their effectiveness. The CDC has not yet called. NSSF would like to discuss ways to make communities safer while ensuring that the rights of law-abiding citizens to exercise their Second Amendment rights are respected.
However, the Biden administration seems not to be interested in this. It was obvious that Chipman’s nomination was so. While the administration continues to consider Chipman as a candidate for a role in gun control, it is pushing for other gun control initiatives. The end of Chipman’s nomination doesn’t mean the end.
