During this, Chipman spoke on his willingness to ban average semi-automatic sporting rifles that are in common use. He was also questioned about his time as a lobbyist for most of the major anti-gun organizations.

Since that hearing took place in late May, Chipman's nomination has worked itself out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on a contentious party-line vote. But since being out of committee, there has not yet been a full senate vote on Chipman, and we're now at the beginning of September.

It seems like a long time to wait for a vote. There's a reason for it, though. David Chipman is an anti-gun activist who's been tapped to lead the agency that focuses on America's gun laws. Think of it like this: An inverse would be a Republican president nominating Wayne LaPierre (the head of the NRA) to lead the ATF.

In fact, David Chipman's nomination is so controversial that some moderate Democrats won't vote for him. Specifically, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Jon Tester of Montana, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, and Angus King of Maine.

All these Senators are under significant pressure from pro-gun groups nationally and local ones and their constituents. With the midterms coming up, many are worried that a vote for Chipman could be the action that loses them their seat.

The most telling thing over time has been the attitude of the corporate media. In July, headlines read: "David Chipman is the Right Choice for ATF," but as time passed, even CNN has had to admit that "Biden's ATF Pick faces grim confirmation prospects."