David Chipman, Joe Biden’s pick for director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, supports measures that would turn tens of thousands of Sen. Joe Manchin’s constituents into felons overnight. For that reason alone, voting to confirm Chipman should be a non-starter for the West Virginia Democrat.
Oddly enough, Manchin’s vote is still up in the air. With universal Republican opposition to Chipman in the upper chamber, the only thing standing between him and control of the nation’s firearm law enforcement agency is the gentleman from West Virginia.
Opposition to Chipman isn’t just coming from congressional hard-liners either; even the most centrist components of the Republican delegation have vowed to vote against Chipman.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine recently called Chipman an “unusually divisive” candidate for the job, stating that his past comments “demean law-abiding gun owners.”
While this is an accurate portrayal, it’s also a massive understatement.
During his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee last month, Chipman asserted his support for banning the AR-15 and expanding the prohibitions conditioned in the National Firearms Act to cover all assault rifles.
Five million people in the United States own AR-15s. If Chipman’s vision were to be implemented, they would all be potential felons. Chipman, of course, cannot unilaterally impose such policy as that power lies with Congress. That said, his flagrant disregard for the gun rights of the public ought to set off red flags. Congress tends to leave much discretion to the federal bureaucracy in implementing the laws it passes. If Chipman were confirmed, the ATF would likely stretch existing legislation to its limits to impose restrictions on firearm ownership.
When asked by Sen. Josh Hawley whether he believes that the Supreme Court was correct to affirm that an individual right to firearm ownership exists, Chipman deflected. That alone should be enough to convince anyone who supports gun rights, as Manchin purports to, to be wary of his confirmation.
West Virginia is one of the most conservative and firearm-friendly states in the union; the governor is literally giving away guns as an incentive to get the COVID-19 vaccine, for Pete’s sake. Manchin has a duty to represent the beliefs of those who elected him to the Senate, and confirming Chipman would not be in line with that duty.
While Chipman is far to the left of America on gun policy, he is totally alien to West Virginians. West Virginia ranks fifth in the nation in terms of gun ownership, with 58.5% of the state owning a gun. For reference, Manchin only won the state with 49.6% of the vote in 2018.
Some may be quick to assume that there is no chance of Manchin breaking with his party to block a Biden nominee, but there is some hope.
Back in February, Manchin withheld his support for Biden’s pick to lead the Office of Management and Budget, citing her past comments as evidence of hyperpartisanship that were unbecoming of the role she had been nominated to. Manchin has also, historically, been highly rated by gun rights groups, indicating a willingness to break with his party on the issue.
Gun owners across the U.S. best hope that Manchin chooses to represent West Virginia by refusing to vote for Chipman.
