Where Congress isn t acting on gun reform, President Obama is doing whatever he can. He knows that the ever-present epidemic of gun violence in the United States isn t going to go away on its own, and it s not going to go away by adding more and more guns to the mix either. Common sense actions need to be taken, and that s exactly what the president is offering   NRA be damned.The president wrote Friday in a Facebook post: Today, I want to update you on some important progress we ve made to protect our communities from gun violence. As I said in January, these commonsense steps are not going to prevent every tragedy, but what if they prevented even one? We should be doing everything we can to save lives and spare families the pain and unimaginable loss too many Americans have endured.First, we ve jumpstarted the development of smart gun technology. Today, many gun injuries and deaths are the result of legal guns that were stolen, misused, or discharged accidentally. As long as we ve got the technology to prevent a criminal from stealing and using your smartphone, then we should be able to prevent the wrong person from pulling a trigger on a gun. So, my Administration released a plan today to expedite the development of smart gun technology, including by identifying the requirements that smart guns would have to meet in order for law enforcement to purchase and use them effectively   and keep themselves and the public safer in the process.Second, we re doing more to make sure that those who are already prohibited from obtaining a firearm can t get their hands on one. Today, we re announcing a rule to ensure that federal mental health records about individuals prohibited from buying a gun are reported to the background check system.Third, the White House will convene state and local elected officials from all 50 states in May to discuss their efforts to prevent gun violence through legislative and executive actions. The goal is to figure out what works on the ground when it comes to keeping our communities safe, and then share those practices.As long as I m your president, I will do everything in my power to make our communities safer and keep guns out of the wrong hands. That includes calling on Congress to pass the kinds of commonsense reforms supported by the vast majority of the American people.Making progress on these issues is how we honor the lives that have been lost by gun violence, and it s how we leave behind a stronger, more secure nation for our children. The initiative President Obama announced was just put on the White House blog in great detail, which can be found HERE.The president laid out his hope for smart guns back in January as well: Of course, though, the NRA is already fear-baiting their followers and getting people to be afraid of any changes that my take place..@POTUS' new #guncontrol push is "alarming cops who say they don t want to be guinea pigs." https://t.co/Auoo6o77wu #2A  NRA (@NRA) April 28, 2016And while the police have every right to be apprehensive, it s important to remember that something, anything, needs to be done to help push forth the effort for a safer United States. Promoting safer guns is an idea that should be embraced by all, and you d think any group, like the NRA, who says they re for  responsible gun ownership  would embrace an idea that made gun ownership more responsible.Within the same Politico article that the NRA tweeted out, it states: [Smart gun technology] wouldn t prevent most mass shootings, gun crimes or suicides   currently the biggest driver of gun deaths. However, they could cut down on the roughly 500 deaths each year from accidental shootings, especially by kids. Advocates also point to findings that most youth suicides are committed with a parents  weapon, and instances where officers  own guns are stolen in a scuffle and used to shoot them cause about 1 in 10 police deaths. It s important to note that this technology probably could have happened a long time ago had it not been for possible political backlash. The gun lobby currently owns several members of Congress, which is truly the biggest obstacle to getting common sense gun reform passed.What President Obama has put forth isn t an attack on guns, it s not an attack on gun owners, and it s not going to limit any rights of those who do and should be able to own guns. What it does is put forth measures to make guns safer, less accessible to those who shouldn t have them, and start a national conversation.The president is taking on the NRA and doesn t really care what they have to say, because all they care about is profit for their gun manufacturer buddies. Something needs to happen, and it needs to happen sooner rather than later.Featured Photo by Olivier Douliery-Pool/Getty Images