Trump and 2A
After four and a half years of Trump being President, has Donald Trump been good or bad for the 2nd Amendment?
He has said the right things, loudly and clearly, but actions speak louder than words. Let’s look at his actions.
Good stuff.
During COVID many ‘blue states’ declared gun stores and ranges as “non-essential” and closed them. Trump declared firearms retailers, manufacturers, and ranges as essential critical infrastructure, keeping them open.
In his first term, Trump directed agencies to eliminate regulations that infringed on 2A. Following up on that, on February 7, 2025, Trump issued an Executive Order that: ‘will halt existing policies designed to curtail the clear right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms.’
In July 2025, Trump’s Department of Justice proposed a new rule that could grant gun rights to potentially thousands of Americans who are currently barred from owning firearms. The proposed rule would create a pathway for individuals with criminal convictions to have their gun rights restored, with final discretion left to the attorney general on a case-by-case basis.
In his first term, Trump signed the Fix NICS Act. It required federal agencies to upload more disqualifying records, like mental health adjudications and domestic violence convictions. This helped ensure that prohibited folks couldn’t slip through the cracks. Also – and very importantly - it didn’t create any new restrictions on law-abiding owners.
In Trump’s first term, 234 federal judges were confirmed, including 54 to the appellate courts and three Supreme Court justices: Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. These were solidly 2A judges and the monumental Supreme Court decision in ‘Bruen’ (and other follow up decisions) were made possible by these appointments. These are his longest lasting, pro 2A achievements.
On the negative side, there are some specific issues that some 2A advocates dislike.
After the Parkland shooting in 2018, Trump suggested Red Flag laws could help address mental health threats. But it was just a comment. No federal Red Flag law was enacted.
Under Trump, after the Las Vegas shooting in 2018, the ATF issued a rule that reclassified bump stocks as machine guns. However, this was a strategic move by Trump to head off Congress from rushing through more sweeping legislation that would have certainly impacted and perhaps outlawed semi-automatic rifles. And in 2024, the Supreme Court, led by the Trump-appointed justices, overturned that bump stock ban.
Good or bad. Too early to tell
In May, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) leaked that it is moving forward with plans to merge the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). It is expected to be proposed as part of the White House's full fiscal year 2026 budget. The proposal requires congressional approval.
In addition, since Trump was inaugurated on January 20th, there have been stories of cuts of between 500 and 1,800 ATF employees. However, some or all of these cuts may be transfers in the above reorganization.
Some argue that this merger will result in more resources available to the ATF
The ATF does serve a purpose but it was used by the Biden administration (and could be used again by future left-wing administrations) as ‘lawfare’ against FFL’s and gun owners.
One other thing
If one searches the NY legislature for proposed bills covering guns or firearms, you will find more than 70 bills and most are anti-2A proposals.
When last we looked, if you also search the federal Congress for proposed bills covering guns or firearms, you will find very few and most are pro-2A.
NYS is dominated by anti-2A Democrats while Congress has a slim majority of Republicans and most of the latter will defend 2A. Trump has been very clear he would veto anti-2A bills. Certainly, he deserves some credit for discouraging the anti-2A folks and the dramatic difference between the NY legislature and Congress.
