Senate Republicans on Wednesday grilled President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives for past statements he made while an advocate for major gun control organizations.
David Chipman, a two-decade ATF veteran before retiring from the agency in 2012, testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, along with three other Biden Justice Department nominees, in an effort by the Democratic-controlled committee to hasten the confirmation process.
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Chipman’s nomination has spurred considerable Republican opposition, though GOP senators likely aren’t in a position to block his confirmation. Twenty Republican state attorneys general sent a letter to the committee arguing Chipman is “hostile to our rights and way of life” and called for lawmakers to deny his nomination.
The hearing occurred just after news broke on a deadly mass shooting in San Jose.
Senators asked Chipman about his support for the 1994 “assault weapons” ban, disarming school resource officers, and private individuals’ right to own a firearm, among other issues.
The nominee insisted his political views about firearms would not interfere with his enforcement of current law. But Republican lawmakers were not buying it.
Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, questioned Chipman about past statements on whether law enforcement officials should further scrutinize individuals who previously failed background checks as potential violent criminals.
“When you said, ‘While at ATF, I conducted studies involving people who failed background checks to determine how many later committed crimes with a gun, many did. This is a perfect opportunity to arrest people before committing crimes, rather than responding after the fact.’ I find this statement very troubling,” Lee said.
Chipman said a 2019 Reddit comment of his was taken out of context and that he only referred to people who don’t mention they are a felon on federal firearms forms after committing a felony.
“What I suggested is if we did research, we could determine which of those people were most likely to later commit some violent crime,” Chipman responded. “And I do believe it would be ATF’s mission, that of prosecutors, to prosecute those people who committed a serious federal felony before.”
GOP lawmakers seized on these comments to ask Chipman about the president’s son Hunter Biden.
Republicans, including Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, called for Chipman to pledge that he would investigate Hunter Biden for his recent admission that he was doing hard drugs while buying a gun from a dealer. Recent reports show he answered “no” on the federal firearms background check form when asked if he was an unlawful user of or addicted to any drug.
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“Can I get your commitment that if you are confirmed, you will, in fact, look into this matter and refer it for prosecution? If you find that Hunter Biden violated the law?” Cotton asked.
“Senator, what I will assure you is that as ATF director, I will ensure that all violations of law are investigated and referred,” Chipman replied. “I’m not sure that it has not been investigated.”
