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The seal of the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) 01 June 2007 in Washington, DC.

Part of President Obama's plan to get tough on gun control involves the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, or ATF. The agency hasn't had a permanent director in six years, and now the president is urging Congress to change that.

For more on the beleaguered federal agency, we're joined by John Hudak, governance studies fellow at the Brookings Institution.