Trump DOJ: Ally With Exceptions

The Trump Justice Department is actively suing states over magazine limits and assault weapon bans—but it's defending the same federal gun restrictions it claims to oppose.

State of play: The DOJ's Civil Rights Division has filed a flurry of Second Amendment lawsuits in the past several months:

• Colorado's 15-round magazine cap and Denver's assault weapon ban, challenged last week
• D.C.'s assault weapon ban, sued in December via a newly created Second Amendment Section
• The U.S. Virgin Islands' carry permit scheme, which mimics the New York law SCOTUS struck down in 2022
• An investigation into Los Angeles County's Sheriff's Department for sitting on carry permit applications for up to 18 months

The legal argument Harmeet Dhillon is running is straightforward Bruen application: laws banning arms in common use for lawful purposes have no historical tradition behind them, so they're unconstitutional. At least four justices appear to agree. An assault weapon ban case may be heading to SCOTUS sooner than most expect.

Yes, but: The same DOJ that says "the Second Amendment is not a second-class right" is arguing in federal court that it is a second-class right for cannabis users and people with nonviolent felony convictions. Both the marijuana-user gun ban and felony disarmament statutes are being actively defended by Trump's Justice Department—putting the administration directly against the NRA and most major gun rights organizations.

"The Constitution is not a suggestion, and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right." — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche

Between the lines: That quote lands differently when you know the same office is telling federal courts that a guy who smoked weed, or a man convicted of tax fraud twenty years ago, can be permanently stripped of Second Amendment rights. Bruen requires a historical tradition to justify those bans too—and there isn't one.

What to watch: The Supreme Court is set to rule on the marijuana-user gun ban case soon. How the justices handle the historical tradition test there will signal whether the Trump DOJ's selective Bruen advocacy holds up—or collapses under its own logic.

The bottom line: The Trump administration is the most aggressive DOJ ally Second Amendment groups have had in decades. It's also carrying water for two of the most legally vulnerable gun restrictions on the books. Take the wins, but watch your back.