The implication was that House Republicans had decided that the lesson of the bruising 2012 election was to back off on anything that Democrats could tar as a war on women. (In the meantime, their allies in the states could push through real changes in abortion and contraception access, with very few political barriers.) But that fragile detente may be over, both nationally and in this year’s key state races. The question is whether it's a battle Republicans even want to fight.

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One of the first bits of legislative flotsam to resurface was a measure, introduced by Obenshain in 2009, to force women to report miscarriages to the police within 24 hours or face up to a year in jail.

The text of Obenshain's bill:

[SB962] requires that when a fetal death occurs without medical attendance upon the mother at or after the delivery or abortion, the mother or someone acting on her behalf, within 24 hours, report the fetal death, location of the remains, and identity of the mother to the local or state police or sheriff's department of the city or county where the fetal death occurred. The bill also specifies that no one shall remove, destroy, or otherwise dispose of any remains without the express authorization of law-enforcement officials or the medical examiner, and that a violation of this section is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

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We've been aware of Jackson for some years and while it's difficult to pick so few, here are 10 quotes from the conservative bishop to give you a sense of how he views the world.

1. On gay people: "Their minds are perverted, they’re frankly very sick people psychologically, mentally and emotionally and they see everything through the lens of homosexuality. When they talk about love they’re not talking about love, they’re talking about homosexual sex."

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The secret interment this week at a small Islamic cemetery ended a frustrating search for a community willing to take the body, which had been kept at a funeral parlor in Worcester, Mass., as cemeteries in Massachusetts and several other states refused to accept the remains.

Tsarnaev was killed April 19 in a getaway attempt after a gunbattle with police. His younger brother, Dzhokhar, was captured later and remains in custody. They are accused of setting off two shrapnel-packed pressure-cooker bombs April 15 near the marathon finish line in an attack that killed three people and injured more than 260.

Their uncle, Ruslan Tsarni of Maryland, took responsibility for the body after Tamerlan's wife, Katherine Russell, said she wanted it released to her in-laws. He said his nephew was buried in a cemetery in Doswell with the help of a faith coalition.

"The body's buried," he said. "That's it."

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McAuliffe is a longtime professional fundraiser for the Democratic Party. The dehumanizing stuff was uncovered by (or provided to) BuzzFeed's Andrew Kaczynski who simply posted some clips from the audiotapes of McAuliffe's autobiography. In these clips McAuliffe abandons his wife as she is giving birth to their daughter to go to a party for former Washington Post gossip columnist Lloyd Grove, and then he forces his wife and his literally newborn son to sit in a car, on the way home from the hospital, while he attends a fundraiser. In the second story it is noted that his wife is crying, but the important detail is that he raises a million dollars for the party.

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Investigators are also looking into other potential gifts that McDonnell did not disclose, the Washington Post reports.

From the Post:

Now, federal officials are trying to determine whether to expand that investigation into a broader look at whether McDonnell or his administration took any action to benefit Star Scientific in exchange for monetary or other benefits, according to the four people familiar with the interviews. It is unclear whether the probe will be broadened.

Star Scientific, which manufactures the dietary supplement Anatabloc, has recently been the target of a securities probe by Virginia investigators.

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Cuccinelli had asked for the full 15-judge 4th Circuit Court of Appeals to reconsider a decision by a three-judge panel of the court. But none of the judges favored rehearing the case.

The ban in question, which criminalizes sodomy between either gay or straight consenting adults, is part of Virginia's "Crimes Against Nature" statute, and was found unconstitutional by the panel.

From the Washington Blade:

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Other units would stand down on a rotating basis, said Gen. Mike Hostage, commander of Air Combat Command at Joint Base Langley-Eustis in Virginia.

"The current situation means we're accepting the risk that combat airpower may not be ready to respond immediately to new contingencies as they occur," Hostage said in a statement.

The Air Force didn't immediately release a list of the specific units and bases that would be affected, but it said it would cover some fighters like F-16 Fighting Falcons and F-22 Raptors, and some airborne warning and control aircraft in the U.S., Europe and the Pacific.

The Air Force says, on average, aircrews "lose currency' to fly combat commissions within 90 to 120 days of not flying. It generally takes 60 to 90 days to train the crews to mission-ready status.

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Cuccinelli filed a petition with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, asking for the full 15-judge court to review a decision made last month by a three-judge panel. The panel ruled 2-1 that the statute is unconstitutional based on the Supreme Court's 2003 decision in Lawrence vs. Texas.

The Washington Blade reports:

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Given the professed concerns about election fraud among Virginia Republicans, it seems somewhat astonishing that the man at the center of the Commonwealth's most notorious fraud scandal last year seems to be getting off the hook after initially being charged with 13 criminal counts including eight felony charges.

Colin Small, a Republican Party voter registration supervisor who secretly tossed filled-out voter registration forms into a dumpster last year, had all of his felony charges dropped by the local Republican Commonwealth attorney prosecuting the case yesterday.

Small was arrested and charged with 13 counts -- including destruction and disclosure of voter registrations, as well as obstruction of justice -- in Harrisonburg, Va., in the run-up to the presidential election last year, after he was seen by a local shopkeeper throwing away a bag of registration forms behind his store. Small's felony charges were all dropped on Tuesday, according to local Fox affiliate WHSV.

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Virginia State Police determined 95 vehicles wrecked in 17 separate crashes within a mile span near the base of Fancy Gap Mountain, spokeswoman Corinne Geller said. The crashes began around 1:15 p.m. Sunday when there was heavy fog in the area.

"This mountain is notorious for fog banks. They have advance signs warning people. But the problem is, people are seeing well and suddenly they're in a fog bank," said Glen Sage of the American Red Cross office in the town of Galax.

Since 1997, there have been at least six such pileups on the mountain but Sunday's crash was the most deadly, according to The Roanoke Times. Two people died in crashes involving dozens of vehicles in both 2000 and 2010.

State police said traffic along the interstate in southwest Virginia backed up for about 8 miles in the southbound lanes after the accidents. Authorities closed the northbound lanes so that fire trucks, ambulances and police could get to the wrecked vehicles.

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"I support marriage equality because it is the fair and right thing to do," he wrote. "Like many Virginians and Americans, my views on gay marriage have evolved, and this is the inevitable extension of my efforts to promote equality and opportunity for everyone."

Chris Geidner from BuzzFeed points out that though Warner signed on to a March 1 brief urging the Supreme Court to strike down DOMA, his office would not explicitly express support for same-sex marriage at the time.

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“History has shown us what the right position was, and those were issues that were attacked by people of faith aggressively to change the course of this country,” he said. “We need to fight for the respect for life, not just for life but for respect for life. One leads to the other.”

Blending the explosive emotional issues of abortion and slavery signaled a race quickly gaining heat as the only competitive gubernatorial campaign in America, showcasing stark partisan and ideological divides in a state that has been won twice by Democratic President Barack Obama, yet has a Republican governor and GOP-ruled Legislature.

Cuccinelli spokeswoman Anna Nix called the DPV video an effort by the presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee, former Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe, to shift the focus of the race away from job creation toward divisive issues. Neither McAuliffe nor Cuccinelli faces a challenger for the nomination.

“Instead, McAuliffe wants to take his experience as DNC Chairman and run a contentious campaign that divides Virginia. As attorney general, Ken Cuccinelli fights to protect the innocent. From victims of human trafficking and child pornography to those wrongly convicted of a crime, Ken will continue to speak for the weakest in our society,” Nix said.

Democrats contended that equating the struggle over institutionalized human bondage that led to the Civil War with abortion rights is improper in any context.

“By equating a woman’s constitutional right to make her own health care decisions with slavery, Ken Cuccinelli proved yet again that he is too extreme for Virginia,” said Lauren Harmon, executive director of the Democratic Party of Virginia.

Suggesting any moral equivalency between the abolition of slavery and the dispute over abortion is historically ignorant at best and outrageous at worst, said L. Douglas Wilder, a Virginia grandson of slaves and the nation’s first elected black governor.

“I would think that if Mr. Cuccinelli had a chance to reflect, he would refine his statements,” the Democratic former governor said Tuesday in an Associated Press telephone interview.

“It’s hurtful to me, but it’s a reminder that it’s ignorance. And this isn’t just relegated to white people. Any number of persons of African descent have no idea about slavery and its effects,” Wilder said.

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Bob McDonnell, the popular Republican governor of the state, was not invited to speak this year, the Washington Post reports, "according to someone close to CPAC who was not authorized to speak publicly." However, his ultra-conservative attorney general, Ken Cuccinelli, who is running for governor, is scheduled to open the conference.

This puts McDonnell in the company of another popular Republican governor -- Chris Christie of New Jersey -- who was also snubbed after ticking off conservatives by calling out House Republicans who blocked Hurricane Sandy aid. McDonnell, similarly, got flak from the right for supporting a transportation package that raised taxes.

Cuccinelli's run for governor has exposed a sharp rift between his conservative backers in the state, and more moderate Republicans who are considering supporting a third-party candidate instead. The National Journal reported last week:

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The Associated Press writes that McDonnell issued his annual list of "pardons, commutations, reprieves and other forms of clemency" on Feb. 23, and Libby was included among those whose civil rights have been restored, as of Nov. 1, 2012.

From the AP:

Libby was the chief of staff for Vice President Dick Cheney. He was convicted in 2007 of perjury, obstruction of justice and making false statements in a case involving leaked information that compromised the covert identity of CIA operative Valerie Plame. Libby's 2 1/2-year prison sentence was commuted by then-President George W. Bush.

In Virginia, only the governor can restore felons' civil rights. McDonnell has streamlined the process and, consequently, has restored the rights of more than 4,600 felons – more than any previous governor – with nearly a year still remaining in his term.

"We look at the merits of each application, not the name," McDonnell spokesman Tucker Martin told the AP. "This application was handled like every other one that comes to the office."

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The National Journal reports:

Republicans are viewing the governor’s race with increased urgency. Conservatives are turning against popular GOP Gov. Bob McDonnell, who was frequently mentioned as a 2016 presidential candidate. The state limits the governor to one term.  Many of the party’s business allies are breaking with Ken Cuccinelli, the GOP’s nominee for governor, dissatisfied with his focus on polarizing social issues in kicking off his campaign. And the state’s GOP lieutenant governor, Bill Bolling, is openly mulling a third-party bid, which is looking more plausible by the day.

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From WTVR:

The whistleblower told CBS 6 last year that the inappropriate comments were made by a 20-year police veteran who was talking on the phone to an officer assigned to provide outside security for the president and first lady. The whistleblower reported that the veteran suggested the officer “take a couple of shots . . .” and that another voice in the background talked about planting a bomb under the stage.

The Secret Service investigated and found no criminal act, but the two officers were fired amidst the furor. The fired officers have been fighting to get their jobs back.

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ABC News reports:

The lower chamber passed a bill Monday to study the possibility. The legislation, proposed by Manassas Republican Del. Robert Marshall, would create a new joint subcommittee made up of lawmakers, plus two outside experts, to “study the feasibility of a metallic-based monetary unit.”

The committee could spend up to $17,440 and would present its recommendations before the legislative session starts in 2014.

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