In an obvious allusion to Franklin Deleanor Roosevelt’s famous radio “Fireside Chats,” which many considered revolutionary for the time, Vice President Joe Biden has invited the public to engage in a “Fireside Hangout” on Google+ on Thursday at 1:45 pm EST. He will be joined by Kimberly Blaine, producer of the Web series www.TheGoToMom.TV, Guy Kawasaki, a Silicon Valley venture capitalist and Phil DeFranco, a popular YouTube blogger. Together they will have a conversation and take questions from the public about the Obama administration’s plan for gun control and regulation. The discussion is scheduled to last about 30 minutes.
Google+ users can suggest questions by following the participants on Google+. “PBS NewsHour’s” Hari Sreenivasan will be moderating the event. Google has said this will be only the first in a series of “hangouts” held by senior Obama administration officials.
Biden is also preparing the launch of a White House campaign of road trips to promote gun control which is scheduled to begin in Richmond, Virginia. Virginia lawmakers have been debating a bill that would require private sellers to conduct criminal background checks on buyers at gun shows, as opposed to the current law which only requires dealers to conduct background checks.
