The Trump administration's reported proposal to ban transgender people from owning guns has drawn condemnation from the National Rifle Association (NRA) and every other notable gun-rights group in the country.
The Daily Wire first reported Thursday, based on anonymous Justice Department sources, that senior officials in the department are considering using their rulemaking authority to declare that trans people are mentally ill, stripping them of their Second Amendment rights. Other major news outlets rereported the story.
The Justice Department hasn't issued any such rule yet, or attached a name to any of the statements leaking out to the press, so this all amounts to more of a trial balloon. But as Reason's Jacob Sullum wrote, the idea is "legally loony." There is no statutory authority for such a categorical decree. Even if Congress did pass such a law, it would be unconstitutional based on current Supreme Court precedent and prevailing circuit court opinions.
