Steve Dettelbach, the Director of the Biden Administration’s Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), told Congress that he’s “not a firearms expert” during a House Appropriations subcommittee meeting last Tuesday.
Dettelbach was responding to Texas Rep. Jake Ellzey (R) who asked him, “In 15 seconds, would you define an ‘assault weapon’ for me?”
Dettelbach would not define what an “assault weapon” is, despite indicating that he would support a sweeping ban on them.
“I’ll go shorter than that, because honestly, if Congress wishes to take that up, I think Congress would have to do the work,” Dettelbach replied, punting on the question.
“But we would be there to provide technical assistance. I, unlike you, am not a firearms expert to the same extent as you maybe, but we have people at ATF who can talk about velocity of firearms, what damage different kinds of firearms cause… so whatever determination you make would be an informed one,” he added.
Dettelbach’s admission of his own ignorance is nothing new. He unsuccessfully ran for the Attorney General of Ohio in 2018, discussing gun control during campaign events without defining the term even then.
Reactions to Dettelbach’s statements were, understandably, met with incredulity.
Attorney Kostas Moras wrote on Twitter, “He admits he isn’t a firearms expert, and I appreciate that honesty. But then, why is he head of the ATF? Does he know a lot about alcohol or tobacco or something?”
Townhall.com writer Derek Hunter also joked, “’If it looks like anything Stallone, Schwarzenegger, Statham or Willis ever held in a movie it is scary and needs to be banned.’”
Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, agreed, “Joe Biden’s ATF Director just testified in a Congressional hearing that he’s not a firearms expert. Wow. Maybe the ATF shouldn’t be regulating your firearms then.”