A little more than a month after the nearly $200 million deal between Gov. Charlie Crist and U.S. Sugar Corp. closed, the tooth-and-nail battle the deal spawned may be in its final throes.

The highly contentious teacher merit pay proposal that was shot down by Gov. Charlie Crist last spring has re-emerged, but with some preliminary concessions to teachers and also perhaps to Gov.-elect Rick Scott, who -- as the father of a special education teacher -- voiced concerns about the proposals fairness to some educators.

A consortium of European companies is vying to finance and operate Florida's high-speed rail line between Tampa and Orlando.

I don't claim to be an expert on monetary policy or international finance, but I've been astonished by the degree of disrespect expressed here and abroad to the latest economic policies of President Barack Obama and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

On Thursday, incoming Attorney General Pam Bondi and outgoing Attorney General Bill McCollum released a letter on which they collaborated, encouraging current and incoming attorneys general and governors across the nation to join the suit McCollum launched against new federal health-care laws.

Take no comfort in the Environmental Protection Agencys latest gift. Florida doesnt need another 15 months to comply with a monumentally bad decision, it needs to fight back.

The Florida Senates political right turn was marked on its opening day by the occasional red light with a dwindling number of Republican moderates voting no on several veto overrides sought by leaders.

Taking up Senate President Mike Haridopolos call to make Medicaid reform within Florida a priority, Senate leaders held a freewheeling discussion Wednesday with health care providers, insurers and patients in the first step toward comprehensive legislation.

U.S. Rep. Connie Mack dropped his bid to move up to the fifth-ranking position in the newly controlled Republican Congress Wednesday, but he took a big step toward challenging Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.