Trump talks with NRA chief Wayne LaPierre and goes back to spouting NRA talking points in spite of what he said after mass shootings

"The person said it’s “politically achievable” to pass some legislation, perhaps a scaled-back background checks bill or a red flag measure, if Trump backs them. “If he gets behind something, then Republicans will follow,” the person said. “At some point, the president has to signal to the party what he’s for.”

Still, the odds of serious gun control legislation clearing Congress and being signed into law remain slim, especially as a pair of shootings in Texas and Ohio that left 32 people dead including the perpetrator in Ohio fade from public memory.

And many noted that Trump's shifting rhetoric comes after Trump spoke several times, including Tuesday, with NRA chief Wayne LaPierre. "I spoke to the president today," LaPierre tweeted Tuesday. "We discussed the best ways to prevent these types of tragedies. @realDonaldTrump is a strong #2A President and supports our Right to Keep and Bear Arms!"

In recent days, many conversations at the White House and on Capitol Hill have focused on the red flag proposal.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a Trump ally and chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is working on legislation that would provide grants to states to implement red flag laws. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) also has a red flag bill that would give money to states to enact such laws.

“It is a legitimate political argument to make that our background check system should be more extensive, but I don’t understand why that has become the holy grail of action when that has nothing to do with what caused these shootings,” Rubio said in a recent interview.

Red flag legislation is likely the best bet for the GOP to get something through. But gun rights groups and several Republican lawmakers — including Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 3 Senate Republican, and Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota — have expressed concerns about whether targets of the law would have access to proper due process. Wisconsin GOP Sen. Ron Johnson, who chairs the Homeland Security Committee, said Tuesday he did not support a federal red flag law but could get behind Graham’s bill."