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In the wake of the mass shootings in Atlanta and Boulder, the Biden government has revealed several executive actions designed to curb gun violence. The government also plans to appoint David Chipman, a former federal agent and gun control advocate, to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
The actions include a directive that the Justice Department will, within the following month, issue proposals for regulations on “ghost weapons” – unregistered firearms that can be assembled from parts.
Joe Biden will also instruct the Justice Department to clarify the regulations to ensure that pistols equipped with stabilizing braces, which essentially turn them into rifles, will be regulated by the National Firearms Act. Guns are cheaper and easier to carry across state lines, while guns are more regulated. The suspect in the Boulder shooting used a gun with a shackle that looks and works like a rifle, and uses the same ammunition as the infamous AR-15, but not regulated as a rifle under current laws.
And the president will ask various agencies to devote more resources to measures to prevent violence in the community, and will call on the Justice Department to develop model “ red flag ” laws – allowing family members to petition courts for take firearms from people who are considered a threat. – for states to incorporate and adopt. Several states, including Colorado, already have red flag laws on the books.
Officials said these new measures are only the beginning and that the government will encourage Democrats in Congress to push through more gun control reforms and consider other executive measures to reduce gun violence.
Biden, who as vice president of directing the Obama administration’s efforts to prevent gun violence, promised ambitious reforms while campaigning for president. In the run-up to the 2020 election, he pledged to pass legislation requiring background checks for all firearms sales, banning online firearms sales, and banning the production and sale of high-capacity assault weapons and magazines – and the ones already in circulation. regulate or buy back magazines. Gun control advocates were disappointed with the president’s lack of immediate, early action after taking office.
Naming Chipman as ATF director could be a first step toward more action. The post has been vacant since 2015. But Chipman faces a tough battle in the Senate. While the Democrats have a narrow majority, even moderates may be tired of Chiman’s strong stances against all assault weapons and other restrictions.
Getting gun control legislation through the Senate will be even more difficult, as Republicans are vehemently opposed to legislation. After the mass shooting at Sandy Hook elementary school in 2012, Biden failed to push through important gun control laws. Although the Democrats had a majority at the time, the bill did not provide enough support to overcome a filibuster. Democrats now have an even smaller lead in the Senate.