ATF - DEA Merger. Good Idea?

In this episode we discuss the DOJs proposed merger of the ATF and DEA.  Is it a good idea?

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Transcript

0:15

Well, welcome to the Lib Shoot podcast. My name is Jeff Doll. I've been a licensed farm dealer for the last 18 years, and this podcast talk about all things related to Second Amendment, as well as anything else going in the world, A sports story, or. Anything else that I might find interesting. So welcome, welcome, welcome. So first, before we get into the, the topic of the day, I just wanna send praises out to God for what he has done in terms of the cease fire between Iran and in Israel. And it, it is just a, it's a miracle and, you know, praise to him. Kudos to president Trump for, for negotiating this. And maybe we are on a path. To seeing some true, true peace in this world. But just again, I just wanna give out all praises to God for that. So welcome, welcome, welcome. Well, we've got a big one today and there's a big thing going in Washington and it's got everybody in this two a community buzzing. And it is around Attorney General Pam Bonney and the. Trump administration pushing a proposal to merge the Bureau of Alcohol, tobacco, firearms and Explosives. Yeah, the A TF My favorite agency with the DEA, the Drug Enforcement Ag Agency. So the idea's got folks on both sides of the gun debate riled up and for once they're kind of agreeing on things and, and the fact is that they don't like it, but they don't like it for very different reasons. So get ready. Grab your stuff and let's sit, let's get ready to get this going. So, but before we dive in, if you don't haven't, please subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast Fountain or wherever you listen. Follow me on at Jeff Dole. True social or just you know, shoot me an email at jeff@livetoshoot.com. And if you wanna support this show, go to the link in the notes and get yourself some$25 of free ammo. Right there. And then that'll help support this show. So let's get to it. The A-T-F-D-E-A merger proposal hit the headlines big time. And it was first, you know, floated by I guess the Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and Palm Ba, Pam Bondy. She's been out there defending it in the congressional hearing just a couple days ago in the plan. Fold the a TS functions into the DA creating a super agency. The DOJs pitch is that it'll streamline operations. Cut costs and make law enforcement more efficient because as Pam Bondy says, guns and drugs go together. Sounds simple, right? Well, I don't know.'cause there's a lot of layers on going on with this. So let's start with the pro merger side. The folks in the Trump camp are waving the efficiency flag. Bond needs been crystal clear in her testimony before the House Appropriations Committee, she says this mergers about getting a TF agents out on the streets with DEA agents focusing on real criminals, you know, drug traffickers, cartels, and the like, instead of in her words. Knocking on doors of legal gun owners in the middle of the night, she's framing it as a win for law abiding gun owners, promising that a TF won't be harassing folks like you and me over our constitutional protective firearms. I can't argue with that, I have to say I like that idea, but you know, I. Is that what's really gonna happen? And the DOJs budget documents, you know, they back up what she says. The merger will lead to efficiency and resources, case de deconfliction regulatory efforts and reduction of duplicate functions. Now give credit where credit's due bonding. Been Pro two A lately. She fired the A TF Chief Counsel, Pamela Hicks, who was a hold order from Biden. She's repealed that zero tolerance policy that was yanking licenses from FFLs like me over just paperwork typos. She's set up the Second Amendment task force to push back on government overreach. So she's when she says, she's says mergers about keeping a TF focused on bad guys and not law abiding citizens, I wanna believe her. The idea of cutting bureau bureaucratic bloat and making sure agencies aren't stepping on each other's toes. It's not a bad idea, but let's be real. Guns and drugs do go to together. In the criminal world, cartels aren't exactly known for following the NFA right plus. There's the budget angle. Trump admin is proposing a 26% cut to the A TF budget down to 1.2 billion from 1.625 billion, and a 4.4% trim to the DEA. They're saying this merger will save taxpayer dollars and will keep the good parts of the a TF like their explosive training. Alabama and Huntsville intact and even, told rep Dale Strong that no cuts are planned. That facility for folks who's been screaming to defund or boss, the A TF, and I know there are a lot out there, this could be a step in the right direction. And I am a propo, a big proponent of cutting spending. I think all these agencies bloated, but let's pump the brakes. Efficiency government. Do they go together? Is it really possible to, to make'em efficient, or are we just gonna have a big bloated gun agency? I'm skeptical and there are a lot of other people out there. I. Now let's talk about the opposition because that proposal's got people just going crazy first, the Pro two, a crowd, and I'm talking to people like Guns of America, fire and Policy Coalition, and various people on Twitter. They're calling this merger a horrible idea and a super agency of gun control enforcers. The Firearms Policy Collection Coalition flat out says it's an abomination that could create a taxpayer funded super agency tar to target gun owners. Their big worry merging the A TF into the da, which has a bigger budget and broader reach, could mean more resources for anti-gun policies down the road, especially if a gun grabbing administration gets in. Imagine the future where the DA's massive budget gets redirected to crack down on legal gun owners under the guise of drug enforcement. That's a nightmare. Others are, are, are saying, you know, Pam, Pam Bonney herself is the danger to her rights defending this merger and some are even calling her to be replaced. They point to her past as the Florida Ag where she backed red flag laws and age restrictions after parkland and moves that still have even bad taste in the mouths of those of the no compromised gun folks. They fear here is that Pam Bondy's, not the Rock Solid two a champion, and this is just a Trojan horse for more regulation. Not lift. Then you got the other side, like the Giffords and the Brady groups who hated the, who hate this merger for an entirely different reason. They're crying that old weaken efforts to stop gun traffickers, straw purchasers, and rogue gun dealers. Emma Brown from Giffords says, slashing a TF budget and folding into the DA is like defunding the police when it comes to gun crime. They are the A TF specialized role in enforcing federal firearms laws will get diluted in a bigger agency focused on drugs. Lindsey Nichols from Gifford sworn it would threaten the enforcement of federal firearms license laws and Brady United claimed claiming that it is a gift to the gun industry and they'll be let shady dealers off the hook so that you know. Again, just to digress here from some other thoughts I had, you know, that is where, you know, the, the gun control groups are if that they are still focused on going after the legal gun owners and the legal gun dealers, and that's what this, you know, this does scare them. And so sometimes you gotta look at how your enemy's reacting to these proposals because they're afraid now. We're face, the focus actually goes on true criminals with the Merck because of the merger, then we won't be able to go after the legal guys. Right? So that is in my mind, one thing to keep in mind. You know, but we're not gonna shed any tears for'em. Like I said, love it or hate it. The A A TF does handle things like ballistics and explosive training that even PRO two A folks see as valuable. So. If those things get lost in the shuffle or funneled, it could hurt legitimate law enforcement efforts. So, but this thing does have to get congressional approval. And with the 20 2400 funding bill explicitly barring a TF functions from being transferred, this plan might be dead in the water unless Congress signs off. So, where do I stand? Well, like I said, I'm all reigning in the A TF. I've always been that they've been a thorn on the side of the law abiding gun owners for decades. The stuff that they've done with pistol braces and gun ghost guns and the zero tolerancy. Are, are just out of control. Bonding has done some good things by rolling back some of these ideas and the a TS, but it's got me nervous'cause the A TF is bad enough on its own, but folding them into the DA feels like trading one devil for another. The DA's got its own laundry list of issues, overreach, civil asset, Forer, you name it. Combining them with the A DF could create a Frankenstein monster of an agency, and I don't really trust Washington to keep it on lease, especially if political winds shift in a few years. The second amendment's too scare, too sacred to gamble on promises of efficiency. I get the appeal, streamlining operations, focusing on the cartels, real criminals, blah, blah, blah. You've, you've seen too many reforms turn into excuses for moral control and the fact that gun control groups are screaming about this too. It just tells me nobody really knows how this will shake out. So here's my take. If we're gonna mess with the A TF, let's talk about ABOs in the model out outright. Just stripping it down to its bare bones, not merging it with a bigger beast and keeping things that are important, like explosive trainings in the ballistic labs and you know, licensing new dealers and things like that. But if Pam Bonnie wants to prove she's approved, I. Two, a champion that she claims to be, she needs to start listening to the gun community and not the suits in dc. So what do you think? Shoot me an email. Let me know what you think about it. Hit me up on X at Jeff dod drop me an email at Jeff at live to shoot. Tell me what you think about this potential merger. Curious to see what your thoughts are. You can send me a text message. There's a link in the show notes as well. So appreciate you listening. Have a great week and I will talk to you later.