A California-based company has bought a Florida medical marijuana operation for $53 million in the latest transaction in what investors hope will be among the nation’s most-lucrative medical pot markets.

A Tallahassee judge on Tuesday lifted a hold on her order finding that Florida patients should be allowed to smoke medical marijuana if their doctors approve it.

A Tampa-based orchid grower is challenging a rule proposed by state health officials, arguing the proposal fails to properly carry out a law giving preference for up to two highly sought-after medical marijuana licenses to applicants who own facilities that were used to process citrus.

Friday marked the onset of the 2018 hurricane season, but the political squalls are already brewing throughout the Sunshine State, with the August primary and November general elections on the horizon.

At the top of the ticket, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and his challenger, Gov. Rick Scott, have been duking it out, with Scott taking a day off from storming the state to travel to Puerto Rico --- in his official capacity as governor --- as he continues to court Hispanic voters.

Three of the state’s top Democratic candidates for governor support legalization of recreational marijuana, and the fourth backs decriminalizing pot for personal use, showing near-consensus on an issue political rainmaker John Morgan said could determine the outcome of the August primary.

Gov. Rick Scott’s fight to keep patients from smoking pot could spark a “political wildfire” that will cost the Republican votes in his battle to unseat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, according to the man largely responsible for making medical marijuana legal in Florida.

A state law banning patients from smoking medical marijuana is unconstitutional, a Tallahassee judge ruled late Friday.

For a while, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Congressman Ron DeSantis were in danger of serious elbow injuries in a “who’s the Trumpiest” contest that’s part of their larger battle to capture the Republican nomination to succeed Gov. Rick Scott.

Businesses seeking to enter Florida’s pot industry warned state health officials Thursday of numerous flaws in a proposed rule that would expand the number of medical marijuana operators but could lead to further delays in a process that’s already months overdue.