Obama nominates ATF director; bureau without one for four years
At a time when some members of Congress are advocating new gun
laws and raising questions about the eligibility of the Tucson
shooting suspect to buy a gun, it's worth noting that the agency
responsible for enforcing federal gun laws has been without a
director for more than four years.  Congress changed the law in
2006 to require that directors of the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives receive Senate confirmation.
Since then, there has been no confirmed director. All have been
acting. During the George W. Bush administration, ATF's acting
director was a commuter: Michael Sullivan was trying to run the
agency, while also serving as the U.S. attorney in Boston.  The
Obama White House did not nominate a director, Andrew Traver,
until 23 months into the administration. Officials say a major
problem was finding someone who would take the job. Several
people, who were approached, said they did not want to get
caught up in a confirma