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New Jersey Democratic Attorney General Matt Platkin vowed to oppose possible efforts from President Donald Trump to reverse federal firearm regulations advanced under President Joe Biden.
Platkin and more than a dozen other chief legal officers from predominantly Democratic states said that they would defend “major actions” from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. Those actions include a ban on “machine gun conversion devices” as well as the “engaged in the business” rule which significantly expanded the definition of a firearm dealer.
“Protecting our residents and combating gun violence has always been my top priority, resulting in two years running of record-low shootings,” Platkin remarked in a statement about the effort. “But we can’t do it alone, and we count on federal partners to ensure illegal weapons don’t end up within our borders, or that buyers go through basic background checks. The incoming administration has threatened these common-sense protections, so states are stepping in.”
The ban on “machine gun conversion devices” restricts firearm owners from possessing devices that increase the rate of fire on semiautomatic weapons. The release from Platkin contended that the devices “have been frequently used in violent crimes and mass shootings” in his state.
The rule about those “engaged in the business” of selling firearms now requires anyone who sells even one firearm to conduct background checks. Platkin claimed that the removal of the rule would ensure that felons “have more avenues open to illegally purchase a firearm.”
“We will fight devices that allow dangerous people to turn their guns into illegal military-style machine guns,” Platkin continued. “We will fight to close the gun show loophole so that felons and domestic abusers can’t get their hands on weapons by evading background checks.”
Trump has meanwhile promised to endorse national concealed carry reciprocity once he returns to the White House, thereby allowing firearm owners who have a concealed carry permit from their home state to legally carry their weapons across state lines into other jurisdictions.
Various gun rights organizations celebrated the decision while also calling for the passage of national constitutional carry, a policy which would allow firearm owners across the country to conceal their weapons without first obtaining permission from their state or local governments.
