Virginia

RICHMOND (AP) — Virginia's lawsuit challenging the Obama administration's health care reform law cleared its first legal hurdle Monday as a federal judge ruled the law raises a host of complex constitutional issues.

U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson's decision stemmed from Virginia Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II's claims that Congress exceeded its authority under the Constitution's Commerce Clause by requiring citizens to buy health insurance or pay a penalty.

Judge Hudson's ruling denied the Justice Department's attempt to have the lawsuit dismissed, saying further hearings must take place before he can weigh the merits of the case. An Oct. 18 hearing previously was set in the case...

RICHMOND, VA - Virginia State Police chaplains can invoke Jesus during prayers again.

State Police Superintendent Stephen Flaherty reinstated a policy allowing chaplains to use the name Jesus on Wednesday.

Under former Gov. Tim Kaine, who chairs the Democratic National Committee, Flaherty barred chaplains from praying in Jesus' name after a federal appeals court said prayers delivered on behalf of governments cannot favor one religion over another...

Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) -- The Virginia state legislature last night sided with pro-life Gov. Bob McDonnell by upholding his amendment to the state budget to cut taxpayer-funded abortions. The move makes it so the state will cut out funding for about 99 percent of all abortions it previously paid for before.

Last week, McDonnell amended the FY 2011-12 state budget to prohibit taxpayer funding of most elective abortions for low-income residents. That includes abortions in cases where the unborn child is merely disabled or has a condition such as Down syndrome.

The Family Foundation and pro-life groups had been working for the ban on taxpayer funding of abortion for decades and its director Victoria Cobb was elated...

Virginia is poised to pass a law that says residents cannot be compelled to purchase health insurance they don't want.

A bill that has been passed by Virginia's Senate and House of Delegates is designed to challenge President Obama's national healthcare reform plan. It states that mandates should not be imposed on people for health insurance.

The chief sponsor of the measure, Delegate Bob Marshall, notes that Congress has never required individuals or businesses to directly purchase any good or service, and he believes it is unconstitutional to force every legal resident of the U.S. to purchase health insurance...

Richmond, Va. - Abortion-rights advocates have been unable to halt the "Choose Life" license plate variations in nearly two-dozen states, so now they're working to balance the bumper debate.

Activists are pushing a "Trust Women/Respect Choice" license plate in Virginia, which would become only the fourth state to offer a pro-choice plate and the first to require legislative approval for it. Supporters have threatened to sue if lawmakers don't give drivers the option.

"We really don't feel like a license plate is the place to be promoting a political agenda," said Tarina Keene, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia. "However, the pro-choice community feels like they're being taken on by the anti-choice side with this license plate, and we feel like we need to get involved."

Opponents, including the state's attorney general and governor, say they oppose diverting money from plate fees to Planned Parenthood offices not necessarily the plates themselves...

WASHINGTON -- Republican gubernatorial wins in New Jersey and Virginia mark a troubling turn for President Obama, whose personal efforts couldn't stop the fall of Democrats facing a voter backlash over the economy and a notable uptick in the government's would-be role in people's lives.

Obama's 2008 victory in Old Dominion had marked an historic breakthrough for Democrats who hadn't won Virginia's electoral votes since 1964. The fight in the Garden State was more grueling than usually accompanies Democratic campaigns in the reliably blue state of New Jersey.

So the setbacks demonstrate the difficulty of presidential leadership following a campaign built on promises of unity followed by divisive policies and a relentless campaign approach toward big legislative issues like the stimulus and health care bills...

WASHINGTON – Independents who swept Barack Obama to a historic 2008 victory broke big for Republicans on Tuesday as the GOP wrested political control from Democrats in Virginia and New Jersey, a troubling sign for the president and his party heading into an important midterm election year.

Conservative Republican Bob McDonnell's victory in the Virginia governor's race over Democrat R. Creigh Deeds and moderate Republican Chris Christie's ouster of unpopular New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine was a double-barreled triumph for a party looking to rebuild after being booted from power in national elections in 2006 and 2008.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, Maine voters rejected a state law that would allow same-sex couples to wed. If supporters had prevailed, it would have marked the first time that the electorate in any state endorsed gay marriage...

NEW YORK (AFP) – The Republican opposition hoped to draw blood Tuesday in three off-year elections seen as testing US President Barack Obama's popularity 12 months after his Democratic party swept to power.

Gubernatorial elections in New Jersey and Virginia and an intriguing battle for a New York congressional seat will not change the power balance in Washington, where the Democrats have a hefty majority.

But with midterm elections across the country next year, the three contests were being scrutinized for signs of Obama's resilience in the face of bruising debates on the economy, health care reform, and Afghanistan...

Political observers say today's gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia don't bode well for either Democratic candidate -- due in part to President Obama's declining popularity and his policies that don't resonate with the voters.

A pollster and political scientist at the State University of New Jersey says today's gubernatorial race in the Garden State is a tossup that will won by the candidate with the best organization on the ground to get voters to the polls.

Republican Chris Christie leads incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine 47-41 in Public Policy Polling's final poll of the New Jersey governor's race, with Independent Chris Daggett at 11 percent...

Virginia could be poised to swing back to Republican hands in a big way on Tuesday.

The traditionally purple state has trended Democratic in recent elections. President Obama secured a victory there in last year's presidential election and the governorship has been in Democratic hands for eight years.

But with Republican Bob McDonnell holding a wide lead over Democrat Creigh Deeds, the former state attorney general could be at the fore of a GOP takeover on Election Day.

Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, told Fox News he expects McDonnell to win big -- and usher other Republicans into office along the way...