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These regulations are expensive and threaten to close many of the clinics. The Family Foundation, a group of anti-abortion advocates, celebrates these potential closures as a pro-life victory. The organization issued a public statement; “Virginia’s abortion centers now face the choice of either spending their profits on meetings standards or no longer doing abortions at their facilities”. Meanwhile, thousands of Virginia women, including many low-income women and minority women, confront the real threat of losing reliable providers.

The Virginia regulations are the newest anti-abortion laws in a string of state-level legislation passed since the 2010 elections. Earlier in the year, Kansas also began regulating abortion clinics, while Utah and Nebraska restricted the abilities of private insurers to cover abortions. South Dakota proposed some of the most radical legislation, introducing a bill that includes harm to a fetus under the umbrella of “justifiable homicide”, which opens the door to legally protected murder of abortion providers. The bill ultimately did not pass, but South Dakota did implement a law that requires women to undergo a three-day waiting period before receiving an abortion. Backed by the new Republican majorities in many state legislatures, restrictions on abortion are becoming increasing common.

One of these surveys, by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, estimates that in the first quarter of 2011 there were 900,000 fewer uninsured adults aged 19-25 than in 2010. A separate survey by the CDC released this morning shows that the trend may have accelerated in the first quarter of 2011. The Census Bureau reported that the percentage of young adults aged 18-24 without health insurance dropped 2% in 2010, to 27.2%.

Last year, the Department of Health and Human Services projected that 650,000 uninsured young adults would gain coverage in 2011. According to the recent surveys, this underestimated the number by at least 250,000.

The gain in insurance coverage comes despite the harsh effects of the recession, which has left young adults unemployed at almost double the rate of older Americans and incomes sliding faster than the national average. Despite the new measures, young Americans remain uninsured at roughly double the national average.

Building on Thursday's House vote, Republicans are now attempting to attach a rider barring the agency from pursuing any order threatening Boeing's new production line to the NLRB budget. The Senate Appropriations Committee has a narrow 16-14 Democratic majority, and Sen. Mark Pryor (D-Ark.), a member of the panel, has said that he is "leaning toward" the GOP amendment. The amendment, drafted by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is clearly aimed at the Boeing case, but its language would also impact the NLRB's powers in other cases where employers are shown to have moved facilities in order to retaliate against workers for union activities.

Boeing claims that the new South Carolina facility was built for cost reasons, but the company's executives have made past comments expressing concern over strikes and walkouts organized by unionized workers in the Seattle area. The NLRB's counsel found that Boeing's decision to locate in the right-to-work state of South Carolina constituted illegal retaliation against its union workers.

On Monday, the Army said in a letter signed by Sergeant Major of the Army Raymond Chandler III, Gen. Raymond Odierno, U.S. Army Chief of Staff, and John McHugh, Secretary of the Army, that the repeal means that "gay and lesbian Soldiers may serve in our Army with the dignity and respect they deserve." According to Pentagon spokesman George Little, the military is already accepting applications from openly gay recruits, though they will wait to act on them until after the ban is lifted.

The repeal, a campaign pledge of President Obama in 2008, was approved by Congress last year, signed the President, and given final authorization by military leaders this July.

Read the Politico article here

From the Union Leader story:

The Senate voted 17-7 to sustain Lynch in his stance against Senate Bill 129. Senate President Peter Bragdon, R-Milford, and Senate Majority Leader Jeb Bradley, R-Wolfeboro, were among those voting to sustain the veto.

Bragdon and Bradley both voted to pass the bill three months ago, when it passed 14-9 in the Senate.

Some Republicans said they support the idea of requiring photo ID from voters, but that they oppose the system of provisional ballots that the House added to their bill. A provisional ballot would have been required of anyone who could not present a valid state or federally-issued photo ID card.

Town clerks said the provisional ballots would force extra work on their offices, with longer hours, additional staff, late counting and less ballot secrecy for voters...

America Votes, a coalition of groups opposed to SB 129, said the veto "reinforces the integrity of elections in New Hampshire and ensures fair and equal access to the ballot."

You can read and listen to the full piece here.

The progressive energy in my home state of Wisconsin is unlike anything I saw here in 2008 or 2010. There is a clear consensus among the voters I've met these past couple days: they want a government that represents their values, not an extreme administration. Today I knocked on many doors in rural parts of the state and talked to farmers who felt the Wisconsin government agenda has been"sneaky."

I'm amazed at the number of people I've met that are stepping up to volunteer with a campaign for the first time ever - let alone a special election. One man walked up to the phone bank sign-up table at the We Are Wisconsin Madison office, still wearing his bike helmet, and asked me how he could help. He wasn't a union member and had never volunteered for a campaign in the past. He said, "I was just out for a ride and saw you guys here, and I decided that I have to do something."

The inspiring number of volunteers I've seen the last few days have taught me why Wisconsin's official motto is "forward." The people of this state don't settle when things get out of hand - these people work hard for the change they want to see.

On Wisconsin!