Ashley Moody among 26 Republican AGs suing to block Joe Biden rule requiring background checks at gun shows

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Twenty-six Republican Attorneys General filed lawsuits Wednesday challenging a new Joe Biden administration rule requiring firearms dealers across the United States to run background checks on buyers at gun shows and other places outside brick-and-mortar stores.

The lawsuits filed in federal court in Arkansas, Florida and Texas are seeking to block enforcement of the rule announced last month, which aims to close a loophole that has allowed tens of thousands of guns to be sold every year by unlicensed dealers who do not perform background checks to ensure the potential buyer is not legally prohibited from having a firearm.

The lawsuit argues the new rule violates the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and that Democratic President Biden doesn’t have the authority to implement it.

“This is Biden’s latest step in trying to take guns away from law-abiding Americans,” Attorney General Ashley Moody said. “We are fighting back against this federal overreach that would force thousands of law-abiding gun owners to register as federal firearms dealers and navigate a federal bureaucracy. It’s unlawful and reflects a lack of respect for our second amendment rights. We won’t stand for it.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Department of Justice declined to comment on the lawsuit. Biden administration officials have said they are confident the rule, which drew more than 380,000 public comments, would withstand lawsuits.

As the 2024 presidential campaign heats up, the lawsuit and potential court battle to follow could animate both sides — GOP voters who want fewer restrictions on guns and Democrats who want more restrictions on types of firearms and access to them.

Gun control advocates have long pushed for closing the so-called gun show loophole and have praised the new rule on background checks.

“If we don’t update our national system by closing these loopholes, there is no telling how many more Americans we will lose to gun violence,” said Kris Brown, president of the gun control group Brady. “Brady will do everything in our power to defend this rule because we know it brings us closer to a future free from gun violence.”