Even as President Barack Obama calls for new outreach with Cuba, a Florida Democrat on the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee said Cuba has a long way to go and that Congress will look closely at whatever the White House offers.

Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera, R-Fla., slammed President Barack Obamas call for normalizing relations with communist Cuba on Wednesday. Lopez-Cantera is of Cuban ancestry.

On Wednesday, President Barack Obama announced the United States will, for the first time since the Eisenhower administration, resume full diplomatic relations with Cuba, drawing the fire of Gov. Rick Scott, R-Fla. Wednesday also saw the exchange of aid worker Alan Gross -- who has been accused by the Castro regime of being a spy and imprisoned for five years -- for three Cuban spies.

Cynthia OConnell will stay in Gov. Rick Scotts administration, keeping her post as secretary of the Florida Lottery which she has held since 2011. Under Secretary OConnells leadership, the Florida Lottery brought in record sales resulting in an all-time record transfer to Floridas Education Enhancement Trust Fund, Scott said on Wednesday.:She is committed to continuing to maximizing funding for education, and Im confident her work will help us on our path to make Florida the global leader in job creation.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., expressed cautious optimism after President Barack Obamas announcement of some normalization of American relations with Cuba and the exchange of aid worker Alan Gross -- who has been accused by the Castro regime of being a spy and imprisoned for five years -- for three Cuban spies. The success of this monumental development depends on Castros willingness to grant basic democratic freedoms for the Cuban people, Nelson said on Wednesday.

From his perch on the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee, U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., tore into President Barack Obama after news emerged that the administration exchanged three Cuban spies for aid worker Alan Gross who had been imprisoned by the Castro regime for five years.

U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., cheered the news that Alan Gross was being released by the Castro regime but slammed the Obama administration for trying to normalize relations. Diaz-Balart also hit Obama for releasing three Cuban spies.

Gov. Rick Scott announced on Wednesday that Ken Detzner will remain as secretary of the Department of State.

On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla., met with the U.S. mission to the United Nations to deliver a letter signed by almost 90 members of Congress warning about rising anti-Semitism around the globe and urging the U.N. to do more to combat it. Murphy met with Charles Radcliffe, the head of the global issues section of the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), and Leonardo SC Castilho, a human rights officer with OHCHR.

Despite not yet starting his second term in the U.S. House, U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., will chair the U.S. House Subcommittee on National Security for the 114th Congress. U.S. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, the chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform named DeSantis to the post on Tuesday.

Rick Swearingen, a 30- year veteran of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) currently leading Capitol Police, was named interim director of the FDLE on Tuesday.

The Republican Party of Florida released the following statement from chairman of the Republican Party of Florida's Jewish Leadership Council, Honorable Dr. Jeffrey Feingold, onTuesday to coincide with the beginning of Chanukah, the Jewish festival of lights: "Chanukah is a celebration of light and a celebration of life. We rejoice on Chanukah for our religious freedom, our continued survival, our hope, our renewed spirit, and our progress toward peace."

Even as Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi asks the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay of a federal decision striking down the state constitutional amendment recognizing only traditional marriage in the Sunshine State, the Florida Court Clerks and Comptrollers executive director weighed in on Tuesday, warning members not to issue same-sex marriage licenses until there is a binding order in place.

Gov. Rick Scott named Chad Poppell as secretary of the Department of Management Services (DMS) on Tuesday. Poppell has been chief of staff at the Department of Economic Opportunity(DEO) for almost two years.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush announced Tuesday he will "actively explore" running for president in 2016. Tuesday's announcement isn't a definite decision by Bush to run for president, but it's the closest announcement he's made to confirming a run so far.