Biden expected to announce ghost gun rule and nominee for ATF director


President Biden is expected to announce Monday new policy measures on untraceable "ghost guns" and his replacement nominee to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, two people with knowledge of the matter told NBC News.
Republicans were united against Biden's first nominee, 25-year ATF veteran David Chipman, leading the White House to withdraw the nomination. Biden is expected to announce that he's chosen Steve Dettlebach as his replacement nominee, six people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. Dettlebach served as a U.S. attorney in Ohio from 2009 to 2016.
With gun violence rising in many major cities across the United States, the White House has been urged to take steps against ghost guns. These weapons do not have serial numbers, so law enforcement can't track them or carry out background checks. Justice Department statistics show that from 2016 to 2020, law enforcement officials were able to recover almost 24,000 ghost guns from crime scenes.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The White House is expected to enact a rule changing the current definition of a firearm under federal law to include unfinished parts, AP reports, and make it a requirement that dealers run background checks on people who want to buy ghost gun kits that contain the parts necessary to build a firearm.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Massive earthquake sends tsunami across Pacific
Hundreds of thousands of people in Japan and Hawaii were told to evacuate to higher ground
-
Ghislaine Maxwell offers testimony for immunity
Speed Read The convicted sex trafficker offered to testify to Congress about her relationship with late boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein
-
July 30 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Wednesday’s political cartoons include a beast under the surface, new unemployment officers, and more
-
Ghislaine Maxwell offers testimony for immunity
Speed Read The convicted sex trafficker offered to testify to Congress about her relationship with late boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein
-
Judge halts GOP defunding of Planned Parenthood
Speed Read The Trump administration can't withhold Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, said the ruling
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in Gaza
Speed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
Trump executive order targets homeless
Speed Read It will now be easier for states and cities to remove homeless people from the streets
-
Columbia pays $200M to settle with White House
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the school of failing to protect its Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests
-
Florida judge and DOJ make Epstein trouble for Trump
Speed Read The Trump administration's request to release grand jury transcripts from the Epstein investigation was denied
-
Trump attacks Obama as Epstein furor mounts
Speed Read The Trump administration accused the Obama administration of 'treasonous' behavior during the 2016 election
-
Trump administration releases MLK files
Speed Read Newly released documents on the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did not hold any new revelations, King historians said