The Violence of Trump’s Gun Policy Agenda

Trump: gun violence is no public health issue

Photo by Maria Lysenko on Unsplash

Last month, President Trump signed an executive order gutting nearly every major gun policy put in place over the last four years. And on Tuesday, his administration went even further—quietly erasing the surgeon general’s advisory declaring gun violence a public health crisis.

None of this is by accident. It’s a calculated decision, one with real, measurable consequences.

During the Biden administration, federal agencies took concrete steps to treat gun violence like what it is: a public health emergency. They expanded background checks. Closed online and gun show loopholes. Regulated ghost guns—those untraceable firearms increasingly showing up at crime scenes, some with parts spit out by 3D printers.

And perhaps most symbolically, especially for the uncounted millions of gun violence victims, survivors and folks working to stop the never-ending bleeding, they named the crisis out loud.

Now, all of it is being dismantled.

Here’s what’s happening under Trump’s executive order:

The White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention has been shuttered.

The ATF’s “zero tolerance” policy for rogue gun dealers is under review, likely gutted.

Federal efforts to regulate ghost guns are being rolled back.

Background check expansions and loophole closures have been reversed.

Even more troubling, Trump’s DOJ has signaled it may stop defending federal gun laws in court. Everything from bans on gun possession by felons to age restrictions could unravel if they step back.

Then came yesterday’s quiet removal of the surgeon general’s advisory—erasing not just a pronouncement, but erasing the public acknowledgment of what countless families, doctors, and communities already know: gun violence tears through this country like a disease. And no doubt, it’s a disease that disproportionately devastates Black and brown communities.

Take a look at these wild numbers:

In 2022 alone, more than 48,000 Americans died from gun violence—the second highest number ever recorded, second behind 2021, according to the CDC. Black Americans are nearly 10 times more likely to die from gun homicide than white Americans. Between 2016 and 2022, law enforcement recovered over 25,000 ghost guns at crime scenes, according to the ATF.

These numbers aren't theoretical or hypothetical. I’ve seen the toll firsthand as a journalist and as a regular ol’ American. Many of us have. And even under the most pro-health administrations, addressing gun violence is hard. A seemingly unscalable mountain of an issue. But when policymakers choose to strip away protections, roll back oversight, and silence the public health framing altogether—that’s when policy itself pulls the trigger.

Here are a couple links for y’all to read more.

Trump Removes Gun Violence Public Health Advisory — Politico

Trump Moves to Undo Biden’s Gun Policies — The Trace

W.H. Removes Advisory Defining Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue — The Guardian