Trump's Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the city of Denver, Colorado on Tuesday, claiming the city “unconstitutionally bans certain constitutionally protected semi-automatic rifles.”
Yes, Todd Blanche is pushing hard to make his temporary appointment as Attorney General into a permanent gig. He'll do that by nonsense lawsuits like this that no one actually wanted.
“The Constitution is not a suggestion and the Second Amendment is not a second-class right,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement about the suit, adding, “Denver’s ban on commonly owned semi-automatic rifles directly violates the right to bear arms. This Department of Justice will vigorously defend the liberties of law-abiding citizens nationwide.”
You may remember that the Denver area has been plagued by some of the worst mass shootings in U.S. history, beginning in 1999 with the Columbine High School massacre. In April of 2025, Gov. Jared Polis signed into law one of the strictest gun control regulations in the country. “Under the new law, it is illegal to buy, sell and make most semi-automatic firearms without background checks and training,” reported CBS News at the time, which noted Republicans planned to immediately challenge the law in court.
Both Polis and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston have rejected pressure from the Trump administration to roll back the state’s gun laws. On Monday, Johnson responded to a Trump admin ultimatum to move to repeal the laws or face a lawsuit by saying, “We’re here today to let them know that our answer is, "Hell, no.”
