Transition officials have told gun rights groups that they do not expect Mr. Trump to pick an A.T.F. director before next spring, but caution that he is just as likely to tap somebody on impulse, at any moment, without consulting his transition team.
Those said to be under consideration are: Blake Masters, a far-right conservative in Arizona who is close to the financier Peter Thiel and who mounted a failed bid for a House seat; Peter J. Forcelli, a former bureau official who wrote a book on the “Fast and Furious” scandal; Larry Keane, the head of the gun manufacturers’ trade association; and several current and former top A.T.F. officials, including Robert Cekada, Daniel Board and Rick Dressler.
Mr. Dettelbach, for his part, said he would have wanted to remain in his job if Vice President Kamala Harris had been elected.
He has spent his final days visiting field offices around the country, where he has emphasized the advances law enforcement made under his leadership: expansion of the bureau’s crime gun intelligence centers, increasing the reach of A.T.F.’s national ballistics database, slowing the proliferation of deadly and illegal gun accessories known as Glock “switches” and streamlining the inspection process of federally licensed dealers.
Asked if he was alarmed that many of his would-be successors had publicly vowed to reverse every policy action he took, Mr. Dettelbach offered a somewhat surprising answer: He was more concerned that Mr. Trump would appoint no one at all, creating a leadership void at the bureau akin to the seven-year stretch of interim directors that preceded his own appointment.
“I believe very strongly that the president needs to appoint a permanent director,” he said. “Republicans control everything at the moment, and their inclination has been to cut. I think having a permanent director gives A.T.F. a stronger voice in everything related to the budget, and other things that come up.”
— Glenn Thrush in A.T.F. Braces for a Likely Rollback of Its Gun-Control Efforts
Instead of appointing a new director, a better option would be to eliminate the ATF. If there is anything that we have plenty of it would be government alphabet agencies. One (or many) less would probably never be missed.
Yup. Move the tax aspects to Treasury, FFL licensing / NFA admin compliance / import / export regs over to Commerce, and criminal enforcement to DoJ.
I am supporting Matt Bracken. Background is military rather than LE but his novels demonstrate a better understanding of the abiding evil there than any politician has.
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms. All three, legal items. Two specifically protected by the Constitution.( Amdmt 2 & 21)
So what, exactly is this outfit supposed to be doing! Anyway?
21 repealed Prohibition. It gave no new protection
Assign them all to inventory the paper clips in the post office in Bugtussle Junction, Alabama. Then they can start on the staples and rubber bands.
I’m sure those tasks could be assigned to a local Jr. ROTC group, and we’d get a higher performance rate in the bargain.