In a major win for gun rights advocates, the Trump administration’s Department of Justice has ended its ban on forced-reset triggers — a move hailed by Second Amendment supporters as a blow to Biden-era overreach and a long-overdue defense of firearm freedoms.
Announced Friday, the DOJ settlement clears the way for the sale of aftermarket forced-reset triggers, devices that allow semi-automatic rifles to fire more rapidly — without converting them into automatic weapons. The agreement not only reverses years of aggressive enforcement under the Biden administration, but also requires the federal government to return previously seized triggers to their rightful owners.
“The Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” declared U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. “This Department of Justice is restoring the Constitution where others tried to shred it.”
The settlement concludes multiple legal battles waged by Rare Breed Triggers, the Florida-based manufacturer at the center of the controversy. Under Biden, the ATF had labeled the devices illegal “machine guns,” aggressively raiding sellers and threatening law-abiding Americans with felony charges for mere possession. But Rare Breed pushed back — and won.
“This is a landmark moment in the fight against unchecked government power,” said Lawrence DeMonico, president of Rare Breed Triggers. “The ATF and DOJ targeted us not because we broke any law, but because we wouldn’t bow to their unconstitutional demands.”
Biden’s Bureaucrats Overruled
The DOJ’s reversal is seen as a rejection of the Biden administration’s war on gun owners, which included banning accessories, reclassifying braced pistols as short-barreled rifles, and ramping up enforcement on technicalities. Forced-reset triggers, which simply allow a faster reset of the trigger mechanism without eliminating the need for a separate trigger pull for each round, had been wrongfully painted as “machine guns” in an attempt to bypass Congress and push backdoor gun control.
Gun control groups — predictably — are outraged. Vanessa Gonzalez of the GIFFORDS gun control lobby claimed, “The Trump administration has just effectively legalized machine guns. Lives will be lost because of this.”
But pro-2A experts say this is fearmongering and misinformation.
“These devices don’t make a gun automatic — they make it efficient. The Biden administration abused its power and tried to criminalize innovation,” said a firearms law analyst.
What the Settlement Does
- Ends the federal classification of forced-reset triggers as machine guns
- Requires the ATF to return seized property or compensate law-abiding citizens who surrendered their triggers
- Blocks development of similar devices for use in handguns
- Confirms that the Second Amendment remains protected under the Trump administration
Rare Breed had previously been represented by David Warrington — now serving as President Trump’s White House counsel — making the legal battle not just a private fight, but part of the broader war to restore constitutional liberties.
The Bottom Line
With this victory, the Trump administration has drawn a line in the sand: gun rights will be defended, and government abuse will be rolled back. For millions of responsible gun owners, this is a powerful reminder that elections matter — and that freedom, when fought for, can prevail.
