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NPR's Andy Bowers reports from Moscow on Russian President Boris Yeltsin' speech to the parliament today. The speech marked a return for Yeltsin who has been away from the Kremlin due to illness since last summer. His speech to the joint session of parliament scolded lawmakers for failing to deal with Russian problems, promised to bring back order and warned the West about NATO expansion.

NPR'S Edward Lifson reports on what is believed to be the first drive-up boar semen facility. Run by the Fox family in Oskaloosa, Iowa, the artificial insemination facility provides semen from high-quality boars for Iowa's growing hog industry. When a farmer has a sow that is ready to be artificially inseminated, he just drives up and picks up his order.

With just over a week until the Iowa caucuses, organizers for various candidates are trying to make sure their troops will show up in force for one of the most important early contests for the presidential nomination. NPR's Laura Ziegler reports that for many people in Iowa, the up-close-and-personal nature of the caucus process offers them a chance to meet the candidates and for many, it is the closest encounter they have with representative democracy.

NPR'S Don Gonyea reports on the settlement today of a custody case involving a family member who, it was feared, would be allowed to commit suicide if he fell into the wrong hands. Siblings went to court in Michigan this month, to determine who would get custody of their father, Gerald Klooster, diagnosed with Ahlzheimers disease. Klooster's son says he was afraid some family members would try to assist in his father's suicide.

NPR's Mark Roberts reports on how the shutdown has begun to affect state governments that fulfill federal obligations like unemployment insurance. Private contractors who serve federal government clients are also in trouble. And many federal workers, such as scientists working on long-term projects, can't just pick up where they left off.

Winter storms already have dumped a foot of snow on Cleveland, and with sub-zero temperatures predicted for the next few days, no relief appears in sight. But Cleveland's woes don't end there. Reporter Joe Smith says an economist is predicting that the combination of heavy snows and the government shut-down will mean a poor first quarter for the Midwest.

NPR's Adam Hochberg reports that a court in North Carolina is being asked to decide if poor women have the right to abortions paid for by state funds. Recently, the state cut state funding for abortion services for poor women. Abortions rights advocates say the action violates the state constitution because state does provide funds to help poor women give birth.

The Senate Whitewater Committee in hearings today questioned an attorney with the Rose Law Firm of Little Rock, Arkansas. NPR's Jon Greenberg reports testimony before the panel centered on how the law firm began working for a savings and loan and what Hillary Rodham Clinton has said on the subject. The committee chairman, Sen. Alfonse d'Amato, said today he does not plan to call Mrs. Clinton to testify.

Mary Jo Draper from member station KCUR in Kansas City, Missouri, reports on a severe winter storm that tore across the Plains and parts of the Southwest yesterday and today. Several states including Missouri, Kansas, and Oklahoma were frozen by sleet, snow and wind. In parts of Minnesota and North Dakota, high-winds have blown the snow into huge drifts, shutting down highways and in some places keeping snow plows off the roads.

Linda Gradstein reports that a date for early Israeli elections has not been finalized, although the ruling Labor Party says it prefers May 20, five months ahead of the regularly scheduled vote. Meanwhile, the campaign already has begun, with Labor saying it will bring about a comprehensive Middle East peace settlement and the opposition Likud Party warning that a victorious Labor Party will surrender East Jerusalem to the Palestinians.