After four years of the Biden administration’s constant attacks on our First and Second Amendment rights, the Trump administration’s approach is a welcome change. In the first months of President Donald J. Trump’s (R) historic second term, his administration has wasted no time reaffirming its commitment to protecting and expanding Second Amendment rights.
A Review of All of Biden’s Actions
Last February, President Trump signed an executive order directing the attorney general to review all Biden-era firearms regulations, with the goal of identifying and eliminating any rule infringing upon the constitutional rights of gun owners. As this was going to print, Attorney General Pam Bondi and her staff at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) were still working on their response. The executive order, meanwhile, states that the “Second Amendment is an indispensable safeguard of security and liberty. It has preserved the right of the American people to protect ourselves, our families, and our freedoms since the founding of our great Nation. Because it is foundational to maintaining all other rights held by Americans, the right to keep and bear arms must not be infringed.”
An End to the ATF’s “Zero-Tolerance” Policy
The DOJ announced an end to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) “zero-tolerance” policy for Federal Firearms Licensees (such as gun stores). The ATF said that the “Enhanced Regulatory Enforcement Policy, aka the Zero Tolerance Policy, was repealed, and Industry Operations inspections will no longer be held to these previously set guidelines. This page has been removed to comply with this new policy change.”
HHS is Out of Gun-Control Politics
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) removed advisories that previously treated guns as a public-health issue. This Biden administration policy had declared that “gun violence” is a public-health crisis, as if gun ownership is a virus that HHS needs to treat like a pandemic. After an executive order from President Trump, HHS removed this page from its website—specifically, this was known as the “firearm violence in America” webpage.
Challenging Local Licensing Bureaus
The DOJ launched an investigation into Los Angeles County’s concealed-carry licensing procedures, probing whether law-abiding Californians are being systematically denied their rights through excessive bureaucracy and red tape. This aligns with the spirit of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which struck down New York’s discretionary permit regime and affirmed that the right to bear arms extends beyond the home.
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