Alsobrooks Joins Warnock in Slamming Administration for Gutting Gun Safety Investments and Demand Policy Reversals to Save Lives

Senator Angela Alsobrooks and Senator Reverend Warnock are leading a new bicameral oversight effort demanding the Department of Justice (DOJ) to reverse policy changes that are weakening gun violence prevention efforts and leaving Americans less safe

January 23, 2026

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) and Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and a group of lawmakers slammed Attorney General Pam Bondi’s Department of Justice (DOJ) for gutting investments and weakening programs meant to curb gun violence and save lives. The lawmakers are demanding the DOJ reverse their policy changes that are weakening gun violence prevention efforts and leaving Americans less safe. Congresswoman Nikema Williams (D-Ga.-05) is co-leading the effort in the House of Representatives.

“We write in service of our shared duty to keep all Americans safe from gun violence. By weakening programs that protect our communities from illegal firearms and stripping federal funding for violence intervention and prevention programs, the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) policies risk undoing crucial progress in mitigating the root causes of gun violence. We urgently request that you reverse course and instead support proven strategies that increase public safety, curb the spread of illicit guns, and empower local governments as well as community-based organizations to tackle the scourge of gun violence,” the lawmakers said.

In the past year, the DOJ has undermined proven methods for reducing gun violence by eliminating efforts by federal agencies that tackle illicit firearms as well as defunding the very programs intended to address the root causes of gun violence. Harmful actions taken by the Administration include:

Cutting millions in federal funding for local law enforcement and nonprofits supporting violence reduction, victims’ services, and other public safety functions;

Halting payments for $1 billion in federal grant funding for school districts to hire mental health professionals;

Terminating staff at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) responsible for researching violence prevention;

Proposing defunding the federal law enforcement entity that combats the illegal proliferation of firearms and moved to dismantle their tools for doing so;

Diverting 80% of Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) agents to take on immigration enforcement activities;

Revoking the ATF’s “Zero Tolerance” policy and allowed gun dealers who violated federal regulations to apply to reobtain their licenses;

Reportedly ending a program to identify and monitor gun dealers whose guns have been linked to crimes;

Permitting the sale of devices that enable semiautomatic firearms to operate like machine guns.

“Americans of all political beliefs agree that we have lost too many lives to mass shootings and violent crimes in our country,” the lawmakers added.

The oversight effort comes amid news the DOJ is considering loosening more gun regulations to appease special interest groups.

“These actions will make Americans less safe and more vulnerable to gun violence. They worsen the issues underlying gun violence and threaten our nation’s progress in curbing it. As such, we demand you reverse these cuts and rollback these policy changes that threaten the safety of the American people that we all serve,” the lawmakers said.

The oversight letter closes with a series of questions for Attorney General Bondi seeking clarity on why funding for gun violence intervention and prevention programs was removed, how weakening gun industry oversight helps improve public safety, how reassigning ATF agents to handle immigration-related duties impacts pending firearms trafficking investigations, and more.

A copy of the letter can be found HERE.