Dr. John Lott has a new piece at Real Clear Policy.
Democrats fiercely oppose many provisions in the budget reconciliation bill, which President Trump calls the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” They object to requiring able-bodied adults without children to work, do community service, or attend school for 18 hours a week to qualify for Medicaid – warning that it “would cut off 16 million Americans from healthcare.” But, in a press conference by Democrat senators last Thursday,one measure drew particular outrage: repealing the $200 federal tax on manufacturing or transferring suppressors and eliminating their federal registration.
Suppressors reduce gunfire noise by 20 to 35 decibels—roughly the equivalent of wearing hearing protection—by slowing the gases that exit a gun’s barrel. Despite portrayals in Hollywood and claims from gun control advocates, suppressors don’t make guns silent. Even short-term exposure at these levels can be damaging without the use of hearing protection.
It might surprise gun control advocates who like gun control laws in Europe, but the reconciliation bill would bring U.S. suppressor laws in line with a number of European countries. French authorities may penalize gun owners who fail to use suppressors, citing the need to minimize noise disturbances.
Still, Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) argued suppressors will make gunshots inaudible: “no one will be able to hear the gunshots.” Democrat minority leader Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) echoed this, claiming suppressors let criminals hide “their bad horrible deadly deeds.” In reality, AR-15s or .45-caliber handguns with suppressors still sound as loud as jackhammers within three feet. Even a 9mm handgun is as quiet as a chainsaw at a similar close range. Remember this the next time Democrats call suppressors “silencers.”
When Senator Murphy warned that shooters could enter more classrooms or church rooms undetected, he overlooks a key fact: gunshots fired indoors often sound even louder. In enclosed spaces like rooms or vehicles, sound waves bounce off walls and surfaces, amplifying the noise—making suppressors far less stealthy than their critics claim.
Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) claims that suppressors make mass public shootings deadlier. But between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2024, only two of 104 mass public shootings involved suppressors—one in Virginia Beach (2019) and one in Milwaukee (2020). Those two cases averaged 11 casualties, while attacks without suppressors averaged 19.8. The average number of people murdered in both types of incidents was identical at 8.5.
Murphy argues that “silencers are the tools of killers, they are the tools of criminals.” Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) claims that “only criminals” want suppressors. But legal ownership paints a different picture. In 2024, Americans legally owned 3.54 million suppressors—up from 2.66 million in 2021. Despite how easy suppressors are to make, they almost never appear in crimes. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) reported recommending prosecution for about 44 suppressor-related crimes per year over the past decade. That’s just 0.003% of registered suppressors being used in crimes each year.
What makes this low crime rate with suppressors even more surprising is that people with even moderate mechanical skills and access to basic metalworking tools can easily make a firearm suppressor. Indeed, many hobbyists have the skills to build one. Online guides even walk users through the process. In one well-known case, Luigi Mangione, the suspected murderer of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, used a 3D printer to make a handgun and a suppressor to commit the crime.
Even if the reconciliation bill passes, eight states will still ban the ownership of suppressors, including California, Illinois, and New York. Transportation of suppressors through these states is also illegal.
These facts challenge the claim that suppressors pose a significant threat. Rather than making shootings more lethal, the data suggests their use in mass shootings is extremely rare and not correlated with higher fatalities. And there are benefits. Suppressors help shooters protect their hearing, particularly in hunting and indoor ranges. They make shooting less disruptive for neighbors.
One wonders whether the Democrat politicians who speak out on gun control issues have ever fired a gun or if they don’t care about the truth. Unless they are deaf, there is no way that they could have fired a gun with a suppressor and claim they are silent.
John R. Lott, Jr., “Anti-Gun Advocates Suppressing the Facts,” Real Clear Policy, June 18, 2025.
