WASHINGTON, D.C. — A former U.S. attorney for Ohio who President Joe Biden nominated to lead the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) testified before the Senate on Wednesday about why it should confirm him.
What You Need To Know
- Former Ohio U.S. attorney Steve Dettelbach was nominated by President Joe Biden to be the next director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
- Dettelbach was also the 2018 Democratic nominee for Ohio Attorney General
- In his first confirmation hearing before the Senate, Dettelbach discussed the recent mass shootings in Texas and New York and his own record on guns
- The ATF has not had a Senate-confirmed director in seven years
Steve Dettelbach spent seven years as a U.S. attorney in Cleveland and was the 2018 Democratic nominee for Ohio Attorney General.
He’s now trying to become the first director of the ATF in seven years.
“I vow to never let politics, in any way, influence my action as ATF Director,” Dettlebach testified on Wednesday.
Biden nominated Dettelbach last month and faced senators on the Judiciary Committee for the first time on Wednesday — a committee Dettelbach used to work for.
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) introduced him.
“I can think of no better way to support law enforcement, to reject hate and extremism, to keep America safe from violent crime than for the committee and the entire Senate to confirm Steve Dettelbach as ATF director,” Brown said.
The hearing took place less than 24 hours after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where authorities said an 18-year-old man who, according to authorities, legally purchased two AR-15 style rifles murdered 19 children and two teachers.
“I think for me, and for many, last night was a night where parents everywhere hugged their kids just a little bit harder at the end of the day. I know I did,” Dettelbach said of the massacre.
Democrats and Republicans traded views on gun control during the hearing.
“It is unforgivable that we as leaders have come to the point where we mouth words and do nothing,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, said.
Utah Sen. Mike Lee (R) responded: “The left, once again, is calling for more gun control. They want to crack down on law-abiding Americans and federal firearms licensees who want to follow the law, instead of armed criminals.”
The ATF is the lead federal agency to investigate gun crimes and Republicans pressed Dettelbach on his past views on the topic.
“In your 2018 campaign for attorney general, you called for a ban on so-called assault weapons. What is an assault weapon? Can you define it for me?” Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, asked during the hearing.
Dettelbach responded: “Senator, when I was a candidate for office, I did talk about restrictions on assault weapons. I did not define the term and I haven’t gone through the process of defining that term. That would only be for the Congress, if it chose to take that up.”
Dettelbach has received a long list of endorsements from Justice Department officials and law enforcement leaders in both parties. But his path to getting confirmed won’t be easy, given that the Senate is split 50-50 and Biden’s last nominee failed to get enough bipartisan support.
