President Joe Biden is expected to announce new gun regulations on Monday to rein in so-called “ghost guns” — privately made firearms without serial numbers that have been used in several high-profile violent crimes.
Mr Biden is expected to nominate Steve Dettlebach, an Obama-era US attorney, to run the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, people familiar with the matter told the Associated Press.
After his Supreme Court pick Ketanji Brown Jackson’s successful appointment as the first Black woman justice, the confirmation of Mr Dettlebach is expected to be an uphill battle.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary Jen Psaki went on the offensive on Sunday, accusing Republicans of holding federal Covid-19 response funding “hostage” on what many consider to be the GOP’s home turf.
“Title 42 is not an immigration plan or an immigration authority. No one in the administration thinks that. It’s an authority given to the CDC actually by Congress,” Ms Psaki said.
And national security adviser Jake Sullivan has said the US will “not hesitate” to expel additional Russian diplomats from the country for suspected espionage.
