Democratic lawmakers are putting pressure on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) to detail how much it has shifted its enforcement priorities during the second Trump Administration, especially into operations like immigration raids.
On Tuesday, Congressman Joe Morelle (D., N.Y.-25) sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi (R.), FBI Director Kash Patel, and Acting ATF Director Daniel Driscoll demanding they answer a series of questions by next month. The letter was co-signed by seventy other House Democrats. In it, Morrelle accused the ATF of reducing its efforts to combat gun crime and asked for recent enforcement data as well as details on its involvement in immigration enforcement.
“We are writing to you today to share our deep concerns about recent reports on federal law enforcement agent reallocations and personnel attritions across the Department of Justice (DOJ), including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI),” the congressman wrote. “The actions by the DOJ jeopardize important public safety initiatives, including protecting the American people from gun crime.”
The letter brings new scrutiny to the ATF’s recent practices, especially the reported downturn in gun crime referrals. The agency hasn’t been among the most prominent engaged in controversial immigration raids or general street deployments across the country, but it has shown up in several high-profile incidents–including one Minneapolis raid where ATF agents wore masks that concealed their identities and door-to-door patrols during President Donald Trump’s takeover of Washington, DC’s policing in August. The increased scrutiny could become a problem for President Trump’s new nominee for ATF Director, Robert Cekada, when he faces questions during the upcoming Senate confirmation process.
“[R]eporting suggests that ATF has reassigned 80% of its special agents to immigration enforcement,” Morrelle wrote, citing CNN reporting from October.
The ATF did not respond to a request for comment on the letter. However, the DOJ disputed some of CNN’s reporting at the time, claiming ATF agents had “charged more than 4,000 suspects since January and seized more than 22,000 weapons.”
“Our mission is to prosecute criminals, get illegal guns off our streets, and protect all Americans from violent crime, which can be done while simultaneously assisting our partners with immigration enforcement efforts,” a spokesperson told the news station.
But current and former ATF officials told CNN the arrests DOJ touted weren’t necessarily related to gun crimes.
“It’s what they’re not doing,” Scott Shuchart, a former ICE assistant director for regulatory affairs and policy, said. “They are harming the country by undermining federal law enforcement… They are going to get Americans killed so they can deport foreigners.”
Reports from CNN and numerous other outlets, including a recent New York Times story, indicate that the ATF is not alone in having its resources redirected toward immigration. Morelle claimed the priority shift has diminished the federal government’s ability to stop a slew of other serious crimes.
“These agencies have a finite number of resources, and reducing the resources allocated to counterterrorism, counterespionage, gun trafficking, white-collar crime, fraud and public corruption cases, in addition to a slew of other serious criminal investigations, greatly diminishes public safety,” Morrelle wrote.
The Democrats who signed the letter also criticized the Trump Administration’s decision to rescind the Biden Administration’s “Zero Tolerance” policy for Federal Firearms Licenses (FFL). The Biden policy led to a record increase in license revocations, and its reversal earlier this year appears to have led to a record drop, with CNN reporting there may have been none through the first half of 2025. While the gun industry and gun-rights activists have cheered the change, arguing the Biden policy was abusive and unfair, Morrelle and other gun-control advocates are upset by it, claiming it and a recent reduction in the number of Industry Operations Investigators (IOI) represent a new blind spot in combating illegal gun trafficking.
“It is virtually impossible to ensure dealers are maintaining compliance with even the most basic statutory requirements with this rate of inspection, yet recent reporting suggests ATF has already lost one in seven IOIs to job reductions and retirements pushed by your Administration, and may lose a total of 550 of its IOIs if President Trump’s budget is fully implemented,” he said. “These personnel reductions are exacerbating the difficulties in properly ensuring compliance from license holders, leading to dire consequences for preventing gun trafficking and violence in America. Continuing to push resources away from these directives will only further increase gun crimes.”
In the letter, Morrelle demands that the ATF explain how many licenses have been revoked and why. He also asks for details on the number of ongoing investigations into FFL conduct. Further, he wanted details on how many FFLs the ATF has referred for criminal charges during 2025.
“As Members of Congress, it is our responsibility to conduct oversight of how the Department of Justice allocates its federal resources in compliance with the law,” Morrelle wrote.
The letter gives the agency until December 5th to respond to the questions.
