CNN reported over the weekend that, according to three inside sources, FBI Director Kash Patel, additionally serving as acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), has outlined plans that would reposition as many as 1000 ATF agents over to the FBI. The move would diminish the number of ATF agents by over a third, signaling the possibility of reconfiguring the firearms infringement agency into a more regulatory role, like the DMV.
To put the alleged cutback into perspective, the ATF has employed consistent numbers of agents, approximately 2600, and overall employees, more than 5000, for quite a number of years. While there is no indication of support staff cuts, an agent reduction of this magnitude is relatively substantial.
Pro-Second Amendment groups are predictably rejoicing in the possibilities, as law-abiding citizens have lived under the tyrannical thumb of the ATF for years, from the agency’s targeting of gun owners and endless attempts to criminalize Constitutionally protected activities to the arbitrary and prohibitive nature of NFA form filing and wait times. While we’re trimming the fat and loading up the cutting room floor, the administration should retask Form 4 background checks and tax stamp processing to dealers who already use the FBI’s NICS system daily, allowing those approved purchases on the spot and alleviating the need for the entire NFA branch.
Of course, I can’t make that suggestion without mentioning that the NFA, as with the GCA and the Hughes Amendment, are black eyes on any administration that asks citizens for their trust while overseeing programs that violate the rights that the government is sworn to protect and defend. Sorry, but I’m a realist when it comes to these things. I may recognize the value of incremental steps, but I am uncompromising when it comes to the Constitution and don’t take consolation prizes kindly.
According to one of CNN’s sources, restructuring begins with reassigning several hundred ATF agents to the FBI for border-related criminal enforcement duties. The network also claims its release of the story has sparked pushback from within the government, which may have altered some of the FBI’s plans.
“The ATF will temporarily assign approximately 150 agents from existing field offices to other ATF field offices, where they will continue serving as ATF agents to support the surge initiative… It is important to clarify that this is a temporary reassignment of resources to bolster public safety and combat criminal organizations more effectively. Additionally, ATF routinely initiates surge operations in cities across the country facing significant increases in violent crime… These targeted operations are a proven strategy to disrupt criminal activity, apprehend offenders, and support local law enforcement efforts,” ATF spokeswoman Ashlee J L Sherrill told CNN, disputing the details of the network’s other sources.
Perhaps Ashlee didn’t get the memo, however, as the reassignment’s lack of an end date calls into question the nature of any temporary status. At the moment, the FBI and DOJ are remaining silent.
President Trump selected Patel with plans to overhaul the FBI, an agency embroiled in controversy over the last decade as it has clearly been weaponized against Americans and political opponents of the left. With difficulty confirming candidates for the ATF’s top seat in the Senate, Patel was later announced as the acting ATF director, prompting speculation of some level of possible merger between the two agencies. Hopefully, Americans will not be left with a reorganized mess and further confused bureaucracy but rather experience a shift back to values and the integrity of federal law enforcement. Any effort and progress made must be protected through future elections and the exposure and removal of those working within our government against the best interest of American liberty.
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