ICYMI: Cleveland Plain-Dealer: Ohio's Steve Dettelbach gains more endorsements for ATF bid

Today, Steve Dettelbach was endorsed by law enforcement officials and faith leaders from across the state of Ohio to lead the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) as momentum and support for his nomination continues to grow.

In letters to the Senate Judiciary Committee, local law enforcement officials and faith leaders urged Dettelbach's "speedy confirmation" and highlighted his strong record of "communication, collaboration and results," helping to keep violent criminals and weapons off the street.

A letter from faith leaders also noted the importance of Dettelbach's confirmation, citing the "alarming level of anti-religious violence" and Dettelbach's role in the prosecution of a white supremacist who attempted to burn down the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo.

In the six weeks since Dettelbach was nominated, he's earned a wide array of support from law enforcement, former top federal prosecutors appointed by Presidents of both parties, bipartisan mayors of over 100 major cities, and many other leading voices. Importantly, Dettelbach has won support from the people who understand ATF's vital mission the best – from the eight former ATF Directors who endorsed him this week, to the rank-and-file ATF agents and personnel represented by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, which has also endorsed him.

Read more below:

Cleveland Plain-Dealer/Cleveland.com: Ohio's Steve Dettelbach gains more endorsements for ATF bid
[Sabrina Eaton, 6/1/22]

WASHINGTON, D. C. -- As part of its bid to secure U.S. Senate confirmation for Steve Dettelbach's confirmation to head the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the White House on Tuesday released several supportive letters from Ohio law enforcement officials and faith leaders.

Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority police chief Andrés González applauded Dettelbach's work "to bring people together to improve the quality of life in our' communities" when he served as U.S Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio during President Barack Obama's presidency.

A letter from Brian W. Betley, a retired Captain of the Cleveland Division of Police and the immediate past president of Fraternal Order of Police, Cleveland Lodge 8, said that post gave Dettelbach the necessary knowledge and leadership to lead the agency in the right direction.

Retired Summit County Sheriff Steve Barry described Dettelbach as a "true team player" who is committed to safer communities for citizens, removing weapons from the hands of criminals, and takes sincere pride in the job he does in seeking justice for victims and upholding the law. Marion, Ohio police chief Jay McDonald applauded Dettelbach's work with the smaller cities and counties that were in his prosecutorial jurisdiction and said he "always worked closely with Ohio law enforcement and maintained an excellent record of communication, collaboration and results in taking violent criminals off of our streets."

A group of faith leaders, including rabbis at The Park Synagogue in Pepper Pike, OH and the Anshe Chesed Fairmount Temple in Beachwood, wrote a letter urging his "speedy confirmation" to help fight" an alarming level of anti-religious violence. It cited his prosecution of a white supremacist who sought to burn down a predominantly African American church in Conneaut, Ohio and his work forming "United Against Hate, a diverse group of religious leaders to condemn such violence."

It said Dettelbach partnered with law enforcement authorities, including ATF, to prosecute an armed extremist who torched the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo and applauded Dettelbach for bringing a firearms case against a convicted murderer who tracked the movements of Jewish and African American leaders in Detroit while illegally amassing 18 firearms and 40,000 rounds of ammunition.

"ATF is an important partner in protecting the right to worship safely in this nation as part of its broader mission to fight violent crime," their letter said. "As a Senate confirmed Director, which the ATF unfortunately has not had in years, Mr. Dettelbach will help the ATF to be a full and vibrant partner in protecting this most American of rights.

Tuesday's letters are on top of a slew that was previously released. The National Sheriff's Association, the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, the Major County Sheriffs of America, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and the Women in Federal Law Enforcement Foundation have endorsed Dettelbach, as have more than 100 mayors, a group of former ATF directors, ex-Justice Department officials including two former attorneys general, and prosecutors including those who secured the conviction of Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols, who bombed Oklahoma City's federal building in 1995.

ATF has had only one confirmed director since 2006 when Senate confirmation became required for the post, as the job has become a lightning rod in the debate over gun control and gun-owners rights. Biden initially selected former ATF agent and gun control advocate David Chipman to head ATF but withdrew the nomination amid opposition from gun rights groups.

Dettelbach tried to thread the needle between the factions at his Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing last week, which occurred the morning after a Texas teenager killed more than a dozen elementary school students in a mass shooting. He pledged to "do everything I can to enforce the law, to respect the Constitution of the United States and to partner with law enforcement to protect the safety and the rights of innocent and law-abiding Americans."

Democratic senators at the hearing repeatedly expressed outrage over Congress' failure to curtail sales of automatic weapons like the AR-15 rifle used in the latest school shooting, while Republicans criticized gun control advocates for wanting to "crackdown on law-abiding Americans and federal firearms licensees who want to follow the law" instead of the criminals who commit gun crimes.

Again and again, during questioning by senators from both political parties, Dettelbach pledged to enforce the gun laws passed by Congress and vowed to "never let politics in any way influence my action as ATF director." After testifying on his behalf at the hearing, Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown expressed faith that Dettelbach would be confirmed.

"He understands that politics must play no role in running ATF, and his experience and his record bear that out," Brown said at the hearing. "It's why he has broad support from across the ideological spectrum."