NBC News: “Senate gun negotiators are close to the finish line. Talks have moved in a ‘more positive direction since Thursday.’ Legislative text could drop as early as today.”

Punchbowl News: “It appears that the negotiations are back ‘on track’ following discussions over the weekend between the bipartisan groups of senators trying to hash out the package. These talks are being led by Sens. Chris Murphy (D-CT) and John Cornyn (R-TX), with Sens. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ.) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) filling out the rest of the ‘core’ group.”

“The discussions were hung up over two key issues – the so-called ‘boyfriend loophole,’ and providing funds to states that don’t implement red flag laws but instead have crisis intervention programs.”

“However, there appears to have been some concessions by Democrats on both these issues, and the negotiations are moving forward again… This doesn’t necessarily mean the Senate will clear the bill by the start of this recess, as Democrats had hoped. But there is some momentum again, which is far different from the mood when the Senate left on Thursday.”

Axios: Republican senators face pushback from both sides on gun control.

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) joked at a Christian conference that Jesus Christ didn’t have enough AR-15 assault rifles to “keep his government from killing him.”

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), the lead Republican negotiator on the bipartisan gun safety package, told a home-state crowd at the Texas GOP convention on Friday that he had “fought and kept President Biden’s gun grabbing wish list off the table,” yet still received boos from the crowd, CNN reports.

Said Cornyn: “Democrats pushed for an assault weapons ban, I said no. They tried to get a new three-week mandatory waiting period for all gun purchases, I said no. Universal background checks, magazine bans, licensing requirements, the list goes on and on and on. And I said no, no, 1,000 times no.”

Texas Tribune: Caught between an A+ NRA rating and a nation reeling from shootings, John Cornyn is key to whether gun safety deal advances.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) “made another in a string of tone deaf media appearances in the wake of the Uvalde, Texas school shooting,” this time telling a conservative radio host that while it’s difficult for him to offer comfort to the parents of the 19 students killed at Robb Elementary School, he believes “God always has a plan,” the Houston Chronicle reports.

Said Paxton: “If I had the opportunity to talk to the people I’d have to say, look, there’s always a plan. I believe God always has a plan. Life is short no matter what it is.”

Punchbowl News: “For the first time since negotiations began last week in the wake of several horrific mass shootings, there are serious doubts that a deal can be reached by Sens. Chris Murphy and John Cornyn, the lead Democratic and GOP negotiators on the package.”

“Republicans insist Democrats must move in their direction on the so-called “boyfriend loophole,” a provision that bars domestic abusers from getting guns. Republicans want to make sure claims from long dormant relationships don’t impact the ability of someone to buy a gun. Democrats want to broaden the language.”

“There are also unresolved issues over the red-flag provisions, although senators familiar with the matter believe those can still be closed out.”

New York Times: “The impasse on the boyfriend loophole has become so sticky that Senator John Cornyn, Republican of Texas and a crucial player in the talks, said the proposal could be dropped from the package altogether.”

“As the first bipartisan agreement on gun safety measures in years takes shape on Capitol Hill, Republicans and Democrats are laboring to keep their compromise on track by sending disparate messages about its scope and implications,” the New York Times reports.

“Democrats, who wanted far more sweeping gun control steps, have noted that if passed, it would be the most significant legislation on the issue in decades. Republicans, fearful of crossing their anti-gun-control base, are focusing instead on the proposals they kept out of the agreement, including bans on weapons or ammunition and raising the age for purchasing firearms.”

The Hill: Sen. John Cornyn warns gun safety framework may have to be slimmed down.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) “announced he supports a bipartisan framework on gun safety and will likely vote for legislation that reflects it,” The Hill reports.

Said McConnell: “For myself, I’m comfortable with the framework and if the legislation ends up reflecting the framework, I’ll be supportive.”

Earlier for members: Why Gun Reform May Pass This Time

Punchbowl News: “We caught up with all of the key players in the gun-control debate yesterday, and there was one constant – they recognize the need to move quickly to pass this legislation. Almost everyone we spoke to wants to have the Senate vote on this legislation before the July 4 recess.”

“Sen. John Cornyn, the lead Republican in this process, said he thinks negotiators can wrap up the text this week and have it ready for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to put on the floor next week.”

“One way Schumer can speed up the process is to file cloture on a House shell bill later this week, which would start the clock on the legislative process in the Senate. In other words, Schumer can take a House-passed bill, gut it and insert the gun-control proposal whenever the text is ready. This would help avoid one cloture vote – cloture on the motion to proceed – since it would be a House vehicle. Schumer has done this before on previous deals before the text was finalized. So if he does it this week again, we wouldn’t be surprised.”

Politico: House Democrats ready to accept Senate Gun deal — if it can stay intact.

“As Congress wrestles over gun control, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) signed into law a bill Monday that would arm more schoolteachers by reducing training requirements for staffers to carry guns on campus,” the Washington Post reports.

“Ohio already permits schoolteachers to be armed, but they need the permission of their school board and 700 hours of training as a peace officer. In the news conference Monday, DeWine said school staff who want to carry weapons will be required to have at least 24 hours of training.”

Politico: “Probably the best sign for the bipartisan accord on gun reforms is how congressional leaders responded to it over the weekend. This is the sort of moment where something can be easily quashed if desired. That didn’t happen.”

“Senate negotiators announced on Sunday they had agreed on a bipartisan outline for a narrow set of gun safety measures with sufficient support to move through the evenly divided chamber, a significant step toward ending a yearslong congressional impasse on the issue,” the New York Times reports.

“The plan, endorsed by 10 Republicans and 10 Democrats, would include funding for mental health resources, boosting school safety and grants for states to implement so-called red flag laws that allow authorities to confiscate guns from people deemed to be dangerous. It would also expand the nation’s background check system to include juvenile records for any prospective gun buyer under the age of 21.”

Washington Post: “That indicated that the agreement could have enough GOP support to defeat a filibuster, the Senate supermajority rule that has impeded prior gun legislation.”

Earlier for members: Why Gun Reform May Pass This Time

“Senate negotiators in both parties are pushing to announce as soon as Sunday the outlines of an agreement on new measures to address gun violence,“ CNN reports.

Politico: “The emerging package is anchored around extra scrutiny for gun buyers under the age of 21, grants to states to enact so-called red flag laws and new spending on mental health treatment and school security. While translating the agreement into legislation will take time, the group of senators is expected to announce that a significant number of lawmakers in both parties are behind their proposal responding to rising gun violence.”

Axios: “The deal, which will be announced imminently, falls short of what many Democrats want, but if passed, it would be the most significant gun safety measure in decades.”

A new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll finds a majority of U.S. adults say it’s more important to control gun violence than to protect gun rights, 59% to 35%.

Interestingly, 56% of gun owners also say it is more important to curb gun violence than protect gun rights.

“Facebook prohibits gun sales on its service. But buyers and sellers can violate the rule 10 times before they are kicked off the social network,” the Washington Post reports.