The government shutdown has been going on for 16 days so far, and now Americans are saying they'd throw out the entire Congress and start over (if only they could!). A new Rasmussen Reports poll found 78 percent would vote to get rid of the entire Congress and start over again. That's a 10-point jump from the previous high of 68 percent in May of last year. Only 8 percent of voters say they'd keep the entire current Congress.

U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa, weighed in on Tuesday on the ongoing negotiations with Iran over that countrys nuclear program. Ros-Lehtinen insisted Iranian leader Hassan Rouhani cannot be trusted and warned the Obama administration not to back off on sanctions.

After his showing in the 2008 Republican presidential primaries, former Gov. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas moved to Florida. Hes remained somewhat active in the Sunshine State, campaigning for Republicans in the 2010 and 2012 election cycles. Huckabee talked to CBNs David Brody and, in an interview released on Tuesday, said he was open to a second presidential bid in 2016.

The Campaign for Liberty, which is chaired by former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, has launched petitions opposing raising the federal debt ceiling. John Tate, the president of the Campaign for Liberty, sent out an email to supporters on Tuesday night urging them to stand against raising the debt ceiling, insisting this was the best opportunity in years to force Congress to cut spending and finally balance our out-of-control federal budget.

Former Gov. Charlie Crist is turning to Jessica Clark, a fundraiser who helped the Obama campaigns in Florida, as he gears up to run for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination. Alexander Burns over at Politico has the details as Crist looks to build a war chest to take on Gov. Rick Scott.

The Democrats picked up a seat in the Florida House on Tuesday as Amanda Murphy, a vice president with Raymond James, defeated Republican Bill Gunter, a pastor, in a close contest for the open seat representing parts of Pasco County. The seat had been filled by Rep. Mike Fasano who was appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to be Pasco County tax collector. Despite being a Republican, Fasano endorsed Murphy over Gunter.

The state Board of Education met in Tampa Tuesday and decidedto adopt the reading samples associated with the Common Core standards. The board also voted against adopting the student writing samples. Board members also voted to extend the school grade "safety net" through the 2014-15 school year. The safety net had been instituted over the summer and would prevent school grades dipping more than one letter in any given year.

The Florida Chamber of Commerce (in full disclosure, my former employer) released a poll on Tuesday which confirms a poll released last week by the University of North Florida (UNF) that Gov. Rick Scott is making up on ground on former Gov. Charlie Crist, the favorite for the Democratic nomination.

Sunshine State News is hitting the radio airwaves on Tuesday from 3:00-3:30 p.m. Your humble blogger will be on the Ed Dean radio show, which is hosted by one of the most feisty, informative and entertaining conservatives in Florida. It can be heard onlinehereand on two stations in Central Florida -- 89.3 on the west coast and 90.3 on the Atlantic coast.

Conservative Intel commissioned Harper Polling to look at Wednesdays special election for a U.S. Senate seat in New Jersey and the poll finds Newark Mayor Cory Booker, the Democratic candidate, in excellent shape to expand the Democratic majority in the Senate. The poll of likely voters finds Booker taking 52 percent while former Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, the Republican in the race, garners 41 percent. Other recent polls have shown similar results. Despite these polls, the Lonegan camp insists their campaign polls show a much closer contest.

The Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA), a conservative think tank, released a report on Tuesday studying Floridas child welfare system.

Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, gave the thumbs up to state representative hopeful Blaise Ingoglia on Tuesday.Ingoglia is currently running for the House District 35 seat, which covers most of Hernando County.

Former U.S. Rep. Allen West, who has opened the door to a political comeback in 2016, pushed back against his liberal critics on Tuesday.

A national poll released by Rasmussen Reports on Tuesday shows a majority of American adults -- 53 percent -- believe bullying in schools is a larger problem today that it was in the past. Only 9 percent believe it is less of a problem while 32 percent think it is about the same. When Rasmussen took a poll on the same topic three years ago, it showed that 61 percent of American adults thought it was a larger problem. The poll of 1,000 adults was taken from Oct. 11-12 and had a margin of error of +/- 3 percent.

On Tuesday, Gov. Rick Scott sent letters to school superintendents across the state urging them to raise the pay of teachers. Increasing teacher pay was one of Scotts chief goals in the 2013 legislative session.