Trump administration abandons plan to fold ATF into DEA

The administration has abandoned a proposal to fold the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives into the Drug Enforcement Administration after widespread backlash from advocacy groups, lawmakers and agency employees, people briefed on the matter said. The reversal, disclosed as the White House seeks Senate confirmation for the ATF’s deputy director, removes a high-profile element of a Justice Department restructuring intended to shrink agencies and streamline operations.

Officials tied the merger idea to a broader Justice Department shakeup announced last year by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who has promoted consolidation as a means to reduce redundancy across law enforcement components. Blanche was present at a Justice Department news conference on Nov. 19, 2025, when the department outlined plans to reassess structures and missions across several offices. The internal proposal would have relocated ATF into the DEA, effectively changing the bureau’s chain of command and operational alignment.

The plan encountered an unusually broad and cross-ideological resistance that officials say prompted the retreat. Both gun-rights and gun-control organizations expressed concerns, reflecting divergent objections ranging from fears of weakened regulatory focus to alarm about concentrating disparate enforcement priorities under the DEA. Members of Congress from both parties raised objections as well, warning that such a reorganization could undermine statutory authorities and complicate ongoing investigations. Agency employees also mounted internal resistance, questioning the operational and cultural fit of merging two agencies with different missions and statutory frameworks.

Legally, the proposed merger would have required congressional approval, meaning the administration could not complete the change through executive action alone. That procedural hurdle heightened the political stakes, since any legislative effort would have invited extended scrutiny and debate over jurisdiction, funding and oversight. The decision to drop the plan removes the immediate need for such a fight, but it leaves open broader questions about how the administration intends to pursue efficiency goals without congressional buy-in.

The reversal was reported as occurring while the White House was pursuing confirmation for Robert Cekada, the ATF’s deputy director, to become the agency’s permanent director. Administration officials have signaled an interest in stabilizing leadership at the bureau, but the withdrawal of the merger proposal reframes the confirmation debate and could affect how senators evaluate the nominee’s mandate and independence.

The account could not be independently verified at press time and the White House did not immediately provide comment in response to inquiries. There are no on-the-record statements available yet from Justice Department leaders, ATF or DEA officials, or representatives of the advocacy groups cited in opposition.

The episode underscores the political difficulty of reorganizing federal law enforcement. Advocates of consolidation argue that streamlined structures reduce duplication and save costs, while opponents contend that reassigning missions can undermine statutory mandates and erode specialized expertise. For now, the ATF will remain a separate agency, but the administration’s broader effort to reshape Justice Department operations remains an unsettled question for Congress, agency personnel and the public.