Keller @ Large: Real Gun Control Will Require Risk, Expense, Compromise

BOSTON (CBS) - Keeping us safer in general, and keeping guns - especially rapid-fire weapons - out of the hands of violent thugs and terrorists certainly seems like a good idea.

And when Congress signals that it is serious about finding a way to do so, I will eagerly report that to you.

But they are not especially serious.

That is the only conclusion I can draw after several days of watching the grandstanding and stonewalling over the core issue of banning gun sales to people suspicious enough to have made it onto the terrorist watchlist.

Keep in mind, that idea has been floating around Washington since 2007, when the Bush-era Justice Department sought authority to stop those sales.

We last heard about it in December, right after the San Bernardino massacre, when Democrats pushed a bill that would allow the Attorney General to block purchase of guns or explosives by someone on the watchlist.

Their mantra: "If you're too dangerous to fly, you're too dangerous to buy."

But the Republicans killed the bill by adopting a typically Democratic mantra about crime – complaining about a lack of due process. It turns out the secretive watchlist is infamously error-riddled – the late Sen. Ted Kennedy once wound up on it.

We heard the exact same arguments this week; our legislators are very good at recycling.

What we didn't hear was any serious discussion of fixing the broken immigration rules that let the San Bernardino killers in, or the law-enforcement underfunding that let the Orlando murderer run loose.

Serious gun control will require a difficult, politically risky deal that includes expense and compromise.

No wonder the DC lightweights prefer to posture and grab for the low-hanging fruit.

Listen to Jon's commentary: