2A/GUNS/JUSTICE DEPARTMENT/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Justice Department officials have indicated they do not believe the department can regulate the sale of gun bump stocks without congressional action, underscoring concern that an ongoing administrative review into that question is little more than an effort to slow-roll a politically divisive issue.
The Justice Department announced this month that it would review whether bump stocks — a firearm accessory that can turn a semiautomatic rifle into a full-fledged machine gun — are prohibited under a federal statute that outlaws fully-automatic weapons. The review was prompted by the October mass shooting in Las Vegas, where gunman Stephen Paddock outfitted semiautomatic weapons with bump stocks to kill 58 concertgoers on the strip.
But private and public comments from Justice Department officials following the October shooting suggest there is little appetite within the agency to regulate bump stocks, regardless of pressure from the Trump administration. Critics worry that whatever energy there is will fade over the holiday season…
The A.T.F. referred all questions regarding the bump stock review to the Justice Department.”
-Ali Watkins, “Despite Internal Review, Justice Department Officials Say Congress Needs to Act on Bump Stocks,” The New York Times online, Dec. 21, 2017