Weekend in politics: Abortion opponents march in Washington, and more

Phil Pruitt

Abortion opponents plan to march Friday in Washington in a demonstration that coincides with the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that created a constitutional right to abortion.

Thousands are expected for the noon rally on the National Mall and in front of the Supreme Court building, and former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum is one of the speakers.

Vice President Joe Biden will be in Richmond, Va., on Friday for a roundtable discussion on gun control. He’ll meet with experts who worked on gun safety following the 2007 shooting at Virginia Tech.

Recently announced White House proposals call for background checks for all gun sales and bans on military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines.

A “March on Washington for Gun Control” is planned for Saturday in support of the White House proposals. Speakers will include Democrat Reps. Chris Van Hollen and Eleanor Holmes Norton, Children's Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman and actress Kathleen Turner.

Residents of Newtown, Conn., where 20 children and six adults were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14, are scheduled to attend the rally.

Also worth noting: The Republican National Committee continues its winter meeting in Charlotte, and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s last day on the job is Friday.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal declared in a speech Thursday at the RNC meeting that “we've got to stop being the stupid party. It's time for a new Republican Party that talks like adults. We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. I'm here to say we've had enough of that."

And then there is this: Saturday marks 15 years since President Bill Clinton denied an affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky with the words “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”

Sources: Yahoo News’ The Ticket, Yahoo News reporter Chris Moody, Associated Press, and Reuters.