• Sexy Liberal John Fugelsang joins us from the New York Bureau for an hour of Fridays With Fugelsang

• Dave Gilson, writer for “Mother Jones”, calls in at 9:30am ET / 6:30am PT to talk about debunking right wing gun myths

• Vice President Joe Biden urged lawmakers to have the “courage” to pass legislation addressing gun violence on Thursday at a conference in Connecticut just 10 miles from Sandy Hook Elementary School, scene of the Dec. 14 mass shooting.

• The White House on Thursday afternoon flatly rejected a request made earlier in the day by 15 Republican senators to withdraw Chuck Hagel‘s nomination as defense secretary.

• President Barack Obama reached out to the Republican leaders of the House and Senate on Thursday, the first sign in weeks that the two sides could be willing to work on a bipartisan solution to the potentially devastating spending cuts set to take place March 1.

• The defense and prosecution both completed their arguments Friday in Oscar Pistorius’ bail hearing, with the magistrate soon to rule if the double-amputee athlete can be freed before trial or if he must stay behind bars pending trial in the shooting death of his girlfriend.