MACUNGIE, Pa. — Ever since signing the executive order to protect the Second Amendment in February 2025, President Trump has been largely silent on gun issues, until yesterday, when he announced that his administration is working on the issue of “national right to carry.”
The president made the announcement while speaking at a blue-collar rally in Macungie, Pennsylvania, where he claimed, “I saved the Second Amendment” and recognized support from the National Rifle Association (NRA), and its President, Bill Bachenberg, who was in attendance.
However, the announcement was sparse on specific details, with the president stating the administration’s support of “national right to carry legislation,” but declining to mention which bill in particular he supported, perhaps because of the politically charged nature of who backed the bills.
There are only two significant bills in Congress that address this topic. The first is the National Constitutional Carry Act (HR 645), introduced in January 2025, and sponsored by Senator Mike Lee and House Rep. Thomas Massie.
President Trump targeted Rep. Massie, an ardent and faithful supporter of Second Amendment rights, as a political enemy and worked relentlessly against his primary campaign for reelection in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District, which he subsequently lost in May to Trump-endorsed opponent Ed Gallrein.
The second measure is HR 38, the Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act, also introduced in January 2025, and sponsored by Rep. Richard Hudson from North Carolina, and Senator John Cornyn, from Texas. Between the two bills, HR 38 has seen the most legislative progress, but neither has advanced meaningfully in the Republican majority held in both the House and the Senate.
It may not be a coincidence that President Trump is now taking a more public pro-gun position as midterms near, with the country’s more than 100 million gun owners representing one of the largest special interest groups among voters. Also, this July 4 marks the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding, and tying gun rights to patriotic celebrations is an easy public relations ploy for the administration.
Trump Administration’s Anti-Gun History
However, it was just a few months ago when prominent members of the Trump administration, and the president himself, made surprising hostile statements against the right to keep and bear arms, specifically targeting the carrying of firearms and magazines, the very measure he endorsed this week.
In January, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem characterized the mere possession of a handgun and magazines in clearly unfavorable terms (something millions of Americans carry every day), claiming the possession showed intent, “to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement.”
One day later, FBI Director Kash Patel issued more anti-gun rhetoric, claiming that armed Americans can’t attend protests without ill intent: “But as Secretary Noem said, no one who wants to be peaceful shows up at a protest with a firearm that is loaded with two full magazines.”
In the context of the same story, the president stated, “I don’t like that he had two fully-loaded magazines. That’s a lot of bad stuff.”
In February, Trump appointee Jeanine Pirro, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia said, “I don’t care if you have a license in another district and I don’t care if you’re a law-abiding gun owner somewhere else,” threatening to jail law-abiding gun owners who crossed state lines, and has fought aggressively in defending the District’s AR-15 and standard capacity magazine ban.
And perhaps most prominently, former Attorney General Pam Bondi was a well-known gun control supporter, backing “red flag” laws, bans on firearms for adults under 21, and bans on bump stocks. In her brief tenure as attorney general, the DOJ had a mixed bag of results on 2A issues, which we documented in detail.
Whether the president follows through on his promise for a national right to carry, or it is simply an election cycle talking point, remains to be seen. So far, Congress has shown little appetite to advance any such measures.
One Shining Light at the DOJ
The only bright light in the Trump administration when it comes to consistent action on gun rights has been the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department, led by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, who announced the Second Amendment Section in December 2025. The new division has a perfect pro-2A record on every legal action it has taken, which we have extensively tracked.
