The senior policy advisor to Giffords, a group founded to push gun control after former Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot during a campaign rally, has turned on the Biden administration after being dropped from consideration to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
David Chipman, an ardent gun control supporter who advocated for Congress to ban Americans from purchasing so-called “assault weapons” like the AR-15, was once nominated to head the ATF. He worked for the federal law enforcement agency for 25 years before the nomination, and before joining Giffords.
His far-left gun control positions ultimately made him a non-starter for the position.
According to The New York Times, the White House’s strategy for confirming Chipman was to attempt to sway Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) into voting for Chipman during the confirmation process. Manchin is a moderate Democrat in a typically-Republican state, and holds a crucial tie-breaking vote in a Senate that is split 50-50.
But while attempting to persuade Manchin, the Biden administration apparently lost the support of Sen. Angus King (I-ME), meaning it would not have enough votes to confirm Chipman.
That led to bad blood between Chipman and the Biden administration, who Chipman says has not reached out to him since his nomination was withdrawn.
“Either this was impossible to win, or the strategy failed,” Mr. Chipman told The Times. “This was a failure.”
He also criticized the White House for being unable to fill the role after his nomination was dropped.
“In the back of my mind, I always thought that there would be a Plan B, but so far there hasn’t been,” he said.
After being offered a role in the Department of Justice (DOJ), Chipman declined, opting instead to return to Giffords.
Chipman is listed as the anti-gun group’s senior policy advisor.
“During his tenure [in the ATF], he disrupted firearms trafficking operations in Virginia that were supplying illegal guns to New York City, served as a member of ATF’s version of SWAT, and was named the Special Agent in Charge of ATF’s Firearms Programs,” his biography says. “During his tenure at the Department of Justice, David received the Attorney General’s Award for Outstanding Contributions to Community Partnerships for Public Safety in honor of his efforts aimed at preventing gun homicides in targeted US cities. In addition, David has served two terms on the Firearms Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.”
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Pete D’Abrosca is a contributor at The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “David Chipman” by David Chipman. Background Photo “ATF Headquarters” by AgnosticPreachersKid CC BY 2.0.
