ATF in the Crosshairs

A recent target of the Trump administration's efforts to downsize Washington's bureaucracy is the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Thanks to the Department of Government Efficiency, over 50 ATF regulations have been identified for elimination or revision, which is welcome news for Americans' Second Amendment rights.

According to the ATF, the Trump administration is "reviewing and modernizing its regulations." The agency added, "This modernization project focuses ATF's enforcement on violent criminals, while reducing unnecessary regulatory burdens on lawful gun owners and dealers."

Justice Department spokesman Chad Gilmartin explained, "As Attorney General Bondi has made clear, ATF is working hard to reduce regulatory red tape that burdens lawful gun owners and to ensure agents are doing real police work hunting down criminals and gang members — not knocking on the doors of lawful gun owners in the middle of the night."

However, it's not just regulatory changes that the Trump administration is seeking to implement; it also wants to effectively eliminate the ATF altogether by cutting down the size of its workforce, eliminating roughly two-thirds of the agency's inspectors. . . . .