previous month, and december was already a month of record sales, and for the year 2012 saw 19.5 million background checks for firearms. that is a new year le lee record. we can expect to see vice president biden's recommendations on gun concerns, that comes out tomorrow. and big concerns what gun advocates are having ahead of the announcement. bill: the u.s. is now helping france battle islamist militants in the west african country of mali. the u.s. is providing communications help and transportation for military personnel, fighting to take back full control of the country. at the 1 ao 3 at the map behind us we can show you the location from mali. this has been a topic of discussion for some time now when it comes to islamists and powers and the future government of egypt. we've talked quite a bit about