WASHINGTON, D.C. – Firearms Policy Coalition (FPC) today announced its strong opposition to the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recently proposed merger of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The DOJ’s dangerous proposal would consolidate the ATF and DEA into an authoritarian “super-agency” with the combined powers to wage the failed war on drugs and enforce unconstitutional federal gun control laws against all Americans, not just violent criminals and drug cartels. By merging the ATF’s firearms enforcement authority into the DEA, the DOJ is effectively equating peaceable American gun owners with drug cartels, turning millions of law-abiding citizens—as well as their constitutionally protected weapons—into co-equal targets of a militarized federal enforcement regime.

FPC has provided many proposed reforms to the White House, DOJ, and ATF, all of which would improve the lives of law-abiding Americans as well as access to rights and instruments protected by the Constitution. Rather than creating massive new problems for gun owners, the DOJ should instead focus on implementing these proposed reforms, stop engaging in anti-Second Amendment litigation and prosecutions, and support important Second Amendment challenges in the courts, especially the United States Supreme Court.

“We absolutely support the repeal of the unconstitutional federal gun control laws that underpin the ATF’s existence. We very much look forward to the day the ATF is subsequently abolished. And we are proud to be working with the Trump Administration on efforts to remove federal regulations and red tape that separate Americans from the arms of their choosing. But merging the ATF with the DEA is a massive leap in the wrong direction. The Trump Administration and Congress should reject this dangerous proposal and stop the deep state from digging in deeper,” said FPC President Brandon Combs.

FPC remains committed to defending and advancing the right to keep and bear arms, not expanding the scope and reach of federal agencies that routinely violate that right.

About FPC

Firearms Policy Coalition (firearmspolicy.org), a 501(c)4 nonprofit membership organization, exists to create a world of maximal human liberty, defend constitutional rights, advance individual liberty, and restore freedom. We work to achieve our strategic objectives through litigation, research, scholarly publications, amicus briefing, legislative and regulatory action, grassroots activism, education, outreach, and other programs. Our FPC Law program is the nation’s preeminent legal action initiative focused on restoring the right to keep and bear arms throughout the United States. For more on FPC’s lawsuits and other pro-Second Amendment initiatives, follow FPC on X (Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook.