Welcome to Talking Feds, a roundtable that brings together prominent former federal officials

and special guests for a dynamic discussion of the most important political and legal topics

of the day. I'm Harry Littman. Yesterday in capsuleates the endless loop in which we are

mired as a country when it comes to gun safety. First President Biden unveiled a series of gun

safety proposals in the Rose Garden. Biden said gun violence in this country is an epidemic

and it's an international embarrassment. Those executive actions are the best he can do in the

absence of some bipartisan congressional support, particularly in the Senate, which seems doomed by

the strong sway that pro-gun forces such as the NRA have over most of the Republican Party.

Then a few hours after the Biden announcement we had our fourth mass assault shooting since March

16. It's served to bring home the miserable groundhog day dynamic that continues to prevail

in which a new outrage occurs, prompting proposals for gun safety reforms, the Congress fails to act,

the immediate furor dies down and then it all plays out again in the next shooting.

The national discourse on gun safety seems not remotely up to the gravity of the issue.

It is all heat and no light. Both sides seem to repeat familiar talking points with little

prospect of any sort of partial or sensible breakthrough. We turn today to a candid and clear-eyed

look at the state of the gun debate in this country. What underlies the absolute standoff between

opposing factions? Is there any possibility of common ground? Are there possible baby steps the

country can take now or is it a matter of waiting for a change in composition in the Senate?

To answer these and related questions, I'm joined by a superb panel of policy makers and political

figures who have thought deeply about the issue and lived with it and have been trying to move the

debate forward for years. They are. Connor Lamb. Connor is a marine and former federal prosecutor who

has served as the US representative from Pennsylvania's 17th district since January 2019.

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