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A New ATF Director Is Nominated - Will He Get Confirmed? · Live to Shoot - Defending our 2nd Amendment Rights

• 0:14
  Well, welcome to the Live to Shoot podcast.
• 0:15
  My name is Jeff Dole and I've been a licensed firearm dealer for the last 18 years.
• 0:19
  And this podcast we talk about all things related to Second Amendment, as well as anything else going in the world sports story or anything else I might.
• 0:26
  Fine.
• 0:27
  Interesting.
• 0:27
  So welcome, welcome, welcome.
• 0:29
  This is a week before Thanksgiving.
• 0:30
  This is my favorite time of year.
• 0:32
  I love this time.
• 0:33
  We've already got our lights up or decorations up.
• 0:35
  I love to start celebrating.
• 0:37
  Christmas in particular, but I also love the Thanksgiving time of year just being together with family and spending time together.
• 0:43
  So I hope you all have great plans.
• 0:45
  I will probably just do a, a special episode next week and we'll you'll see what that is as we get a little closer to Thanksgiving, but welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome.
• 0:55
  So news today.
• 0:57
  Is that the administration President Trump has nominated Robert cic to be the next director of the bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives.
• 1:07
  So let's get into this and explore his his nomination, why it's significant and what it could possibly mean, so.
• 1:14
  November 18th, just a few days ago, Trump officially sent his Robert Cicada's nomination to the Congress to become the next a TF director.
• 1:22
  Currently, he serves as the deputy director of the A TF position.
• 1:25
  He's held since April, 2025.
• 1:28
  His nomination does mark a notable shift according to multiple parts.
• 1:31
  He's seen as a more traditional.
• 1:33
  Career law enforcement pick not just a political loyalist.
• 1:36
  So let's look into a little bit deeper into cicada's background.
• 1:40
  So his law enforcement career, he started, before joining the A TF, he worked for the New York Police Department.
• 1:46
  Starting in 1992, he served in the housing Bureau, the Citywide Anti-Gang Enforcement Unit and the Organized Crime Bureau.
• 1:53
  He later served in the plantation Florida Police Department, including working on a SWAT team.
• 1:58
  He joined the A TF in 2005 as a special agent in the, florida Baltimore Field office.
• 2:03
  I'm sorry.
• 2:04
  And he's risen through the ranks and he's been a special agent in charge in both Miami and Baltimore.
• 2:10
  He's the deputy director over our Central region 19 states and executive Assistant director for operations As the deputy director, he oversees major A TF divisions, including the regulatory field, operations and intelligence.
• 2:23
  From his official bio, he's also involved in the National Crime Gun Intelligence Governing Board and the IACP Firearms Committee.
• 2:31
  So his nomination has, you know, drawn you know, strong support from gun rights and the fire, fire firearms industry who prioritize a trusted law enforcement.
• 2:43
  Veteran approach.
• 2:45
  So in SSF, the National Shootings sports Foundation praised his experience.
• 2:50
  They said he respects the Second Amendment and views the firearm industry, not as an adversary, but as a valuable partner.
• 2:57
  The American Suppressor Association also welcomed the pick.
• 3:00
  Its President Knox Williams said that cicada's leadership would give law abiding governors a seat at the table and the City Citizens Committee for the right to keep and bear arms echoed similar symptoms.
• 3:11
  They welcomed what they called his Pro Second Amendment views and highlighted his decades of a TF experience from a government leadership perspective.
• 3:19
  His appointment continues a broader shakeup at the A TF under the Trauma Administration.
• 3:24
  In recent New Months, several top a TF leadership roles have been reshaped.
• 3:29
  So why might this nomination be important?
• 3:33
  Well, his institutional knowledge, he's not an outsider.
• 3:36
  He has decades of experience in the a TF political signaling.
• 3:40
  By selecting someone who, with deep law enforcement roots, rather than purely a political pick, Trump may be aiming to pressure both gun right advocates in those worried about a TF overreach and regulatory implications.
• 3:53
  Given his support for major firearm organization, his leadership could mean a regulatory approach favorable to gun owners while still enforcing firearm laws.
• 4:02
  Confirmation risk.
• 4:03
  Even though many in the gun rights community support him, his confirmation is not guaranteed.
• 4:08
  The ATF role is a politically contentious one, and his confirmation will have to go through the s Senate Judiciary Committee.
• 4:16
  Implications.
• 4:17
  If he's confirmed for gun owners, there may be more trust in a TF enforcement.
• 4:22
  For law enforcement, his deep operational background means he could emphasize crime gun intelligence and use ATFs enforcement ca capacity in targeted ways for the firearm industry.
• 4:33
  Regulatory relationships might improve, and for policy, his directorship could influence how a TF prioritizes resource, maybe putting less emphasis on paperwork enforcement and more on criminal investigations or outreach.
• 4:46
  So let's hope so.
• 4:48
  Some questions out there, some common questions.
• 4:50
  Wasn't he already at in a top role at the A TF?
• 4:52
  Yeah, he's been a deputy director since April, 2025, which is the second highest role in the agency.
• 4:58
  You know, what is the Pro Amendment people think?
• 5:00
  Well, we've already talked about that.
• 5:02
  There seems to, seems to be favorable across the industry.
• 5:05
  He does have field experience.
• 5:06
  And what about non-gun groups or critics?
• 5:08
  Is there opposition?
• 5:10
  There hasn't been anything deeply covered yet.
• 5:12
  I haven't seen anybody like every town or, you know any of those come out yet in terms of opposition.
• 5:19
  But we'll have to wait as we get a little closer to this confirmation.
• 5:22
  There is going to be a challenge with this confirmation.
• 5:25
  The, before, you know, it's important to understand that, that the confirming, confirming the A TF director is is difficult.
• 5:34
  Before 2006, A TF directors were simply appointed by the president, but with the 2006 reauthorization of the Patriot Act, Congress added provision requiring Senate confirmation of a TF Directors.
• 5:46
  Ironically, that same group has been playing a big role in resisting these nominations.
• 5:53
  There have been very few confirmed directors.
• 5:55
  Todd Jones was confirmed in 2013 after a really growing experience.
• 6:00
  And then for years the A TF went without any Senate confirmed leader relying on active directors.
• 6:06
  Deba, who we are not a fan of, was confirmed in 2022 by just a narrow margin of 48 46 with Senate, pretty much voting along party lines.
• 6:17
  So.
• 6:19
  This could be a you know, a big, that might be seen as a bridge since he is not a political appointee, he is more of a operational leader.
• 6:27
  So maybe the the left will, favoring we'll just have to wait to see.
• 6:32
  So hopefully, you know, from what I'm hearing, you know and this, that always can change as, as we dig deeper in people's background.
• 6:40
  But he seems to be a pretty solid pick to lead the A TF.
• 6:44
  He has extensive law enforcement background, which, you know, honestly, that's what the a TF is.
• 6:50
  They should be, they should be going after the bad guys and not after legal firearms, you know, citizens.
• 6:57
  And trying to restrict our, our second amendment rights.
• 6:59
  They should just be going after the bad guy.
• 7:01
  Maybe having somebody in law enforcement and not some kind of political, with an agenda person in there running it will get the ATF shifted more in that direction.
• 7:10
  Time will only tell you never know what happens when people get have power.
• 7:15
  So.
• 7:16
  Thank you for listening.
• 7:17
  We're gonna keep following up, but we'll track how this confirmation goes.
• 7:21
  Not sure when he'll get in front of the Senate.
• 7:23
  I mean, the Senate has not been running, moving very fast and nominating any of the nominations.
• 7:28
  We've got judges out there still waiting to be nominated.
• 7:31
  So it could be a while, but hopefully we can get him across the finish line here pretty soon.
• 7:37
  So take care if you haven't subscribed, subscribe, like, give this a review.
• 7:42
  That always helps with that old, nasty algorithm.
• 7:45
  And, you know, have a great weekend and I will be talking to you soon.