Far too often our government leaders and lawmakers try to “fix” all our perceived problems in a particular area in one fell swoop, an approach that is actually flawed and impedes progress.

Ohio Gov. John Kasich learned this lesson the hard way with Senate Bill 5, the overreaching collective-bargaining reform measures that were eventually overturned by voters through a statewide ballot issue.

President Barack Obama is certainly guilty of the same with , among others, the bailouts and the Affordable Care Act, all of which included some important components but were so large and rushed through that they became almost incomprehensible and overwhelming.

Now here we go again with proposed anti-gun legislation. The president unveiled a $500 million package that includes 23 executive orders but will also require action by Congress.

Some of the proposed changes make perfect sense –- consistent background checks regardless of where a firearm is purchased and allowing schools to use federal grant funds for safety improvements. Others, including the ban on military-style assault rifles and magazine clips for them, need more review.

But lumping everything into a one- plan-fits-all approach makes it more difficult to accomplish anything because opponents of the changes will have far more opportunities to criticize.

A smarter approach would be incremental changes that can be addressed one at a time.

The end result would be better for government efficiency and better for the American people.