With Congress on recess, Obama seeks to turn up the heat on lawmakers to address immigration when they return. Pro-abortion protesters demand North Dakota Republican governor to veto legislation that could pave the way to legal personhood for unborn children. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Afghan president Hamid Karzai saying that Washington and Kabul are now of the same mind on peace talks with the Taliban. The Supreme Court opens the first of two days of oral arguments over same-sex marriage. Finance minister of Holland, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, sent traders into a tailspin with a few not-so-well chosen words.

The Supreme Court prepares to hears two days of arguments over two measures that define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Billionaire New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg plans to pour twelve million dollars into television commercials advocating gun control. Washington expresses displeasure with Iraq over aid to Syria. The US suspects Iran of airlifting weapons and fighters to help prop up the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Business news, after developments on the European debt crisis last week traders got spooked and drove the market down.

House lawmakers okay a Senate-passed stopgap funding bill while the long-term battle over deficit reduction continues. North Korea launches a cyberattack on South Korea, but was more akin to digital vandalism than to national-security or corporate espionage. President Obama speaks to about a thousand Israeli college students in Jerusalem. He spoke mainly of the issues surrounding the Palestinians, rather than tackling more serious issues. National Religious Broadcasters President Frank Wright submits his resignation, which will be effective in the fall. Technology and commodity-related stocks led Wall Street down on Thursday as oil and metal prices fell.

Former Planned Parenthood director Abby Johnson recounts testimony in the Kermit Gosnell trial. Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper signs several bills into law that make Colorado the strictest state on gun control in the country. President Obama is in Jerusalem talking up the peace process. The Senate passes its stopgap government funding bill. Stocks hold their ground as Wall Street turns its attention to the Federal Reserve.

A federal judge strikes down a Missouri law that would have exempted the state from the part of Obamacare that requires insurance plans to cover abortion inducing drugs. A tragedy is averted on a college campus in Florida. Accusations over the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Both the rebels and the regime accuse each other of using chemical weapons in Aleppo. President Obama weighs in on the History Channel series The Bible. The Dow Jones Industrial Average turns down again and Wall Street logs its first three-day losing streak this year.

Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus discusses the GOP’s new action plan to capture new voters. Israel prepares for a three-day visit from President Obama. Thomas Perez, President Obama’s nominee for Labor Secretary, faces opposition from Republicans over his work at the Justice Department’s Civil Rights division. The US hopes an American pastor jailed in Iran will be pardoned during this week’s observance of the Persian New Year. Terms of a European bailout of Cyprus rattled global markets yesterday.

Sunday political talk shows: Dueling budget blueprints in the House and Senate, GOP chairman vows more robust outreach to minorities. CPAC '13: Freshman Texas senator lifts conservatives' spirits, attendees choose Rand Paul first and Marco Rubio second in presidential straw poll. North Korea: Pentagon draws up plans to protect U.S. from Pyongyang nuclear threat. Obamacare: Federal judge issues another injunction protecting religious conscience on birth-control and abortifacient mandate. Business: Dow winning streak ends, market looks ahead to update from Fed on monetary policy.

The White House admits the release of more than 2000 illegal immigrants from jail in February in anticipation of sequester cuts. Austin Ruse of the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute states that Pope Francis is a traditionalist on social issues such as life and family. Syria’s brutal civil war continues on as the atrocities mount. The Obama administration makes plans to allow the FBI and National Security Administration access to a massive financial database in hopes of tracking down terrorists. Captain Emil Kapaun, a Roman Catholic priest from Kansas, will receive the Medal of Honor in April. Another new high for the Dow results in a 10-day winning streak now for Wall Street.

The Boy Scouts are surveying more than one million leaders and parents of scouts on the membership standards before the national council meets next month. American pastor Rick Warren warns communist officials in China that economic liberalism is not enough. Jorge Bergoglio has been chosen to be the next pope. Rick Scott announces the resignation of his lieutenant governor over her part in a million-dollar gambling scandal. President Obama and House Republicans convene for a closed door meeting. Low expectations resulted in a good day on Wall Street, with U-S stocks posting moderate gains.

Paul Ryan's budget plan balances the budget in 10 years and counts on additional revenue from recent tax hikes and savings from the sequester. Sanctions against North Korea could stand in the way of aid. The US calls publicly calls out China for its cyber-attacks. The Senate Judiciary Committee approves a gun-control measure. Florida Republicans rebell against their own GOP governor over expansion of Obamacare. The markets take a breather from their record-setting pace.