A bipartisan measure that would have expanded background checks on gun sales was defeated in the Senate today after its backers could not come up with enough votes to overcome a filibuster.

A recent compromise in the Senate on background checks for gun purchases was hammered out over sandwiches from a popular local eatery.

Virginia’s two-decade-old background checks have stopped 16,000 felons from buying guns.

No one denies that Virginians love their guns, but in the wake of the Newtown massacre they also seem inclined to support some modest gun control proposals.

Some Virginians stopped to mourn the Newtown massacre just long enough to debate which new gun they should buy, it seems.

Bad news doesn’t seem to come in trickles for Mayor Vince Gray’s administration, but in waves.

In March, Mayor Vince Gray ordered background checks for all of his appointees, a consequence of the hiring-related scandals that dogged him during his first months in office. But the recent hiring hiccup with new Deputy Chief of Staff Andi Pringle seems to indicate that the background checks aren’t as thorough as expected.