In a disappointing twist, the Supreme Court has upheld a leftover regulation from the Biden era targeting so-called “ghost guns”—those DIY firearm kits that, until recently, were perfectly legal to own and assemble. Despite the current administration being led by President Trump, the Court ruled 7-2 in favor of keeping the Biden-instituted crackdown in place, giving new life to a regulation conservatives hoped would be buried with the last presidency.

The ruling came down Tuesday, authored by none other than Justice Neil Gorsuch—a Trump appointee. In a bizarre turn, Gorsuch sided with the liberal wing and Chief Justice Roberts to uphold the regulation, leaving Justices Thomas and Alito as the lone defenders of the Second Amendment in this case.

Let’s get one thing straight: this isn’t about crime. It’s about control.

The regulation, enforced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), mandates that these kits must now come with serial numbers, background checks, and sales receipts. Never mind the fact that millions of law-abiding Americans have bought these kits legally for years, or that building firearms for personal use has always been a protected right. The ATF now says if your hobby involves assembling your own gun, you’re a potential criminal.

According to the Court’s ruling, kits like the popular “Buy Build Shoot” package from Polymer80 are now legally considered “weapons.” Gorsuch’s opinion argued that because the kit contains all the necessary parts and can be assembled quickly with common tools, it fits the statutory definition of a firearm. He wrote that items like this “qualify as a weapon” and are “readily convertible” to functioning firearms—so therefore they can be regulated just like a finished gun.

This kind of logic should terrify anyone who values constitutional rights. It’s one thing to regulate actual firearms. It’s another to criminalize potential.

Under this ruling, it doesn’t matter if you’ve assembled anything. Just owning the parts is now treated like owning a finished weapon. So if you’re a hobbyist, a gunsmith-in-training, or just a patriotic American who believes in self-reliance, congratulations—you’re now under federal scrutiny.

Let’s remember, this rule was birthed in the Biden era, when the previous administration worked overtime to undermine the Second Amendment through executive fiat rather than legislation. The ATF’s ghost gun rule was always about optics—pretending to “do something” about crime by targeting hobbyists, not criminals.

And now, despite President Trump being back in office, we’re watching his own appointees greenlight Biden’s anti-gun legacy.

Justice Thomas didn’t mince words in his dissent. Along with Alito, he stood firm that the regulation stretches the definition of a firearm beyond what the law allows. He understood that the Constitution doesn’t allow agencies to invent new crimes through regulatory sleight of hand.

But here’s the kicker: while the Court upheld the rule, this isn’t the end of the road. The Trump administration has the power to kill this regulation the same way Biden birthed it—through executive action. The Department of Justice could issue new guidance, roll back enforcement, and strip this nonsense down to the studs. If this White House wants to protect constitutional rights, now’s the time to prove it.

The ruling also signals a broader problem brewing in the courts. Despite recent victories in Heller and Bruen, which affirmed an individual’s right to bear arms, the Court is now backpedaling. They’re suddenly fine with red flag laws, bans on “high-capacity” magazines, and now, ghost gun crackdowns—so long as the paperwork looks tidy.

It’s death by a thousand cuts. They’re not taking your guns outright—they’re regulating you into submission. And for once, it’s not just the left cheering it on. It’s the so-called conservatives in robes.

Bottom line: this ruling may stand, but it’s not final. With the right leadership—and we’ve got it in the White House right now—this kind of bureaucratic overreach can still be reversed. But if we don’t act, the ATF, the courts, and the ghosts of Biden’s policies will keep chipping away at our rights until there’s nothing left to defend.