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Political insiders, celebrities and Washingtonians are busy preparing for President Obama's inaugural events, which are just days away. Native Americans are getting in on the action by hosting their own inaugural ball. Host Michel Martin talks with the organizers about this unique event.

Lawmakers in New York are getting tough on guns. They passed a new law expanding the state's ban on assault weapons. It's also meant to keep guns out of the hands of the mentally ill. Host Michel Martin speaks to Thomas Kaplan of The New York Times about the legislation.

NPR Political Junkie Ken Rudin recaps the week in politics. Paul Glastris, speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, and Peter Robinson, speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan, discuss the strategy of inauguration addresses and how President Barack Obama's speech will likely differ the second time around.

He was the kindly white adoptive father of two young African-American brothers on the popular TV series, which aired from 1978-86. Bain, 89, died Monday in California. The show made Gary Coleman a star. He died in 2010.

The nation's biggest insurer is starting to dole out bonuses and penalties to nearly 3,000 hospitals as it ties almost $1 billion in payments to the quality of care provided to patients.

A Japanese company recently announced it has such a device. Using a smartphone app, you can flush without touching the handle. You can also raise and lower the seat, and there are built-in speakers.

That talk about the Mayan calendar supposedly predicting the end of the world turned out to be just ... talk. Now, on to the next predictions about the end of the world. Watch out for 2016 and 2020.

Look at Patrick Kruger's house and you see the bottom of his tree through a window, and the top pushing through a damaged roof. Kruger was actually having a little fun. He broke his 14-foot tree in two and used building materials to create the illusion.

With the collapse of House Speaker John Boehner's "Plan B," there's renewed talk about the likelihood that the end-of-year tax hikes and automatic spending cuts will not be avoided. A dive off the so-called fiscal cliff could hit the economy hard. But it also could force compromise in the new year.

The increases add to signs that the economy continues to rebound from the 2007-09 recession and the slow recovery that followed.