Speaking on the Senate floor Monday, Republican Leader Mitch McConnell expressed sympathies for the victims and survivors of the shooting massacre Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

McConnell says the murder of so many children shatters America’s heart, and that President Obama spoke for the nation when he talked about the importance of bond parents have with their children.

Auditors investigating Indiana's Department of Revenue are saying outdated technology and a work culture that sacrificed accuracy for speed led to $526 million in tax errors from the state.

Auditors for the international accounting firm Deloitte also discovered additional errors with 55,000 taxpayer accounts and 2,880 tax refund requests that were never processed. They credited new management at the agency with trying to correct the problems.

Revenue commissioner Mike Alley says he has been working to change the culture since he took over in May.

WFPL will have a special discussion at 1 p.m. Tuesday on what an NBA franchise would mean for Louisville -- the feasibility of pro basketball in Louisville and the possible positive and negative ramifications for the city.

As new pieces of information come in about Friday's mass shooting at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., which left 20 children and six adults dead, we'll post them here.

The day began, just after 10 a.m. ET, with Connecticut State Police Lt. J. Paul Vance telling reporters that most of the emerging evidence is "too difficult to discuss ... I'm not going to lie to you."

Update at 6:49 p.m. ET. Dogs Try To Comfort Students.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is praising the appointment of Congressman Tim Scott, R-S.C., to the succeeded retiring Sen. Jim DeMint.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley announced her decision Monday, making Scott the first African-American senator from the South since Reconstruction.

The 47-year-old congressman was the favorite among conservatives to take DeMint's seat, and McConnell noted the history in Haley's decision.

From McConnell's office:

"I want to congratulate Congressman Scott on his appointment to the United States Senate. As a solid conservative who fights hard for the values and principles he believes in, Tim will help us find real, lasting solutions to the economic challenges facing our nation in the 113th Congress. This is truly an historic moment for the Palmetto State from a Governor who’s broken more than a few barriers in her own career."

The Kentucky Public Service Commission has approved a new area code for western Kentucky.

The new area code, 364, will be added to the current 270 footprint.

PSC Spokesman Andrew Melnykovich say with the overlay, people who currently use 270 won’t have to change numbers, but there will be a different dialing pattern.

"In order to distinguish between the two area codes within the same area, ten-digit dialing with become mandatory for all local calls. That’s similar to what you see in most big cities in the United States today," he said.

Kentucky Third District Congressman John Yarmuth, D-Ky., says lawmakers need to get behind comprehensive gun control in the aftermath of a elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn.

Last Friday, a gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School with an assault rifle and two semi-automatic pistols, killing 20 children and six adults. The shooting has sparked a national debate about the Second Amendment, and gun control groups have been pushing for stricter laws.

However, gun right's advocates such as Congressman Louie Gohmert, R-Tx., have suggested the school’s principal should have been armed as a way to protect the students and staff.

Yarmuth says arming more citizens is not the answer, and that groups like the National Rifle Association ought to be open to reasonable regulations.

"The National Rifle Association has spent untold millions of dollars instilling fear in our citizens and our politicians. That organization, which regularly fails to represent the responsible attitudes of its members, wants us to believe that the best protection against the irresponsible and lethal use of guns is for everyone to be armed," he says. "And while no specific gun regulation may have prevented the deaths of the 20 Sandy Hook Elementary children, 6 and 7-year-old children, the answer simply cannot be a gun in every elementary school lunchbox."

The tragedy in Newtown, Conn., touches people in many different ways. On Morning Edition and at WNYC.org, the station's Brigid Bergin tells the story of Kyle Mangieri, a 7th grade social studies teacher at a school in nearby Fairfield, Conn.

If you're an environmentally-conscious Christmas celebrator, this is the time of year when the question of the sustainability of the holiday season comes up. And for the centerpiece of the holiday--the Christmas tree--is it more environmentally-friendly to buy a real or an artificial one?

J. Blaine Hudson is resigning  at the end December as dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Louisville, a post he's held since 2004.

Hudson took a leave of absence in August for medical reasons. He told faculty then in an e-mail that he'd had cranial surgery but his prognosis was positive.