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Kentucky House Speaker Greg Stumbo is joining calls for a nation debate about gun issues in the wake of the Newtown, Conn., elementary school shootings, and also said that violent video games are a cause of such violence.

Stumbo says he’s a lifelong National Rifle Association member and an avid outdoorsman — and he has helped many NRA-friendly bills pass in Kentucky. But he’s joining other rural Democrats in their call for a discussion on gun control.

The second woman appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court has been publicly sworn in as a justice.

Justice Loretta Rush told about 200 people who filled the court's Statehouse chambers for Friday's swearing-in that she hopes to serve a long time on the high court.

"I promise to be fair and impartial as I respect and protect the rule of law in Indiana," she said.

"I look forward to the day that a woman’s appointment to this court is unremarkable."

The Louisville Cardinals and Kentucky Wildcats square off tomorrow in their annual regular season basketball battle.

U of L has lost four straight to the Wildcats, including their Final Four matchup back in March in New Orleans, but the Cardinals are back this season with an experienced team and bring a 11-1 record and No. 4 ranking to the game.

It will also mark the return of Cards’ center Gorgui Dieng the lineup. He’s missed the last seven games with a broken hand.

WFPL will have NPR's live coverage beginning at 3 p.m. Friday of discussions between President Obama and congressional leaders on the impending "fiscal cliff" -- the automatic tax increases and spending cuts set to go into effect next week.

Obama is meeting at 3 p.m. with  Sens. Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid, the Senate minority and majority leaders, respectively, and House Speaker John Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Jan. 19 is the last day to file a detour-mileage claim with the Paducah & Louisville Railway stemming from the Oct. 29 train derailment in southwestern Jefferson County.

P&L Railway has made 5,000 reimbursements to people affected by the train derailment for out-of-pocket expenses for matters such as mileage, childcare and relocation, P&L said. The rail company has also reimbursed first-responders and schools for some costs.

Louisville may get as many as three inches of snow overnight through Saturday, leading to travel difficulties.

A Winter Weather Advisory will be in effect from 7 p.m. Friday to 7 p.m. Saturday. At first, rain will begin falling in the Louisville area on Friday afternoon, but the precipitation will change over to a rain/snow mix after sunset and then all snow around midnight, the National Weather Service said.

Louisville’s chapter of the U.S. Association for Energy Economics is planning for a full 2013.

The Louisville chapter of the USAEE has been around for about five years, but chapter activities and lectures have been sporadic. The group aims to provide education and networking opportunities for everyone interested in energy—from professionals to the community as a whole.

It's hard to find a lawmaker, pundit or political prognosticator who believes the recommendations from the governor's Blue Ribbon Commission on Tax Reform will pass in the upcoming legislative session (even Gov. Steve Beshear has said 2014 may be the year). But the head of Kentucky Youth Advocates says this could be the time for one particular tax reform.

Kentucky Youth Advocates have released the annual 2012 Kids Count County Data Book, which offers a county-by-county breakdown of "the path that Kentucky students follow starting from birth to the transition to adulthood based on educational outcomes at each of those stages."

Among the suggestions are the implementation of a state-level earned income tax credit. 

Regulators have approved a settlement that prohibits Duke Energy from passing on to consumers all the costs the company will incur building a coal-gasification plant in southwestern Indiana.

Costs for the plant in Edwardsport have increased substantially since it was proposed in 2007, and the latest estimate is $3.5 billion. Under the new agreement, Duke’s customers will pay nearly $2.6 billion for the plant, while the utility will be forced to absorb nearly $900 million in cost overruns.