Biden’s plan to target ‘merchants of death’ in doubt due to lack of research

High-quality research has not been done to examine if tightening restrictions on gun dealers leads to a reduction in violent crime, raising questions about whether President Biden’s recently announced crime-prevention strategy will work.

Mr. Biden’s plan to combat a rising tide of violent crime includes targeting licensed gun dealers who break laws, creating strike forces to stop firearms trafficking and giving more money to the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the agency that tracks the nation’s guns.

The president said the three-pronged strategy will save lives by targeting “merchants of...