Newsmax released a cover story on leading Republican women and placed two top Florida GOP leaders in their top 25. U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen ranked eighth on the list while Republican strategist Ana Navarro placed 22nd. Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is included as an up and comer but does not break the top 25. The entire list can be read here.

Attorney, financial planner and successful leader of the Broward GOP Party, Richard DeNapoli announced Monday he's planning on making a run for theFlorida House District 74 seat, which covers most of Sarasota County and is currently held by Rep. Doug Holder. Holder faces term limits.

President Barack Obama will be visiting Orlando on Saturday. The president will be speaking at the Disabled American Veterans national convention held at the Hilton Hotel. Roughly 4,000 people, including injured veterans, will attend the conference. Obama is scheduled to speak at noon, following an introduction by the first lady. A major goal of the convention is trying to find a way to break through a backlog at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in delivering benefits to veterans. The convention will be held from Aug.10-13.

Monday marks the beginning of the fourth week that the Dream Defenders have been camped outside of Gov. Rick Scott's office, and their protest doesn't show signs of letting up anytime soon.

The defending champion of the Iowa Republican presidential caucus will be returning to the Hawkeye State this week. Rick Santorum clearly is thinking about a second presidential bid and he admitted as much on Sunday morning when he appeared on Meet the Press. Santorum will be hitting Rock Rapids on Thursday to help the Lyon County and the Northwest Iowa Republicans. On Friday, Santorum is planning to spend five hours at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines before heading to Ames for an event hosted by the Iowa Family Leader, a social and religious conservative group.

As the House weighed the Gang of Eights" immigration reform bill that passed the Senate in late June, focus started to turn to U.S. Rep. Dan Webster, R-Fla., as a key vote. Webster, one of the leading conservatives in Florida for decades, represents parts of Central Florida which are increasingly conservative.

Sen. Dwight Bullard, D-Miami, made a stop at the Dream Defenders protest at the Florida Capitol, which has been going on for nearly three weeks. Last year, Bullard sponsored legislation to repeal Stand Your Ground in Florida.

President Barack Obama turns 52 on Sunday and the Republican Party of Florida is doing its part in wishing him a happy birthday.

More and more lawmakers are voicing their opinions about Rev. Jesse Jackson's comments against Florida and Gov. Rick Scott, and they're not happy with what Jackson is saying.

Rev. Jesse Jackson isn't backing down from his comparisons of Gov. Rick Scott to famous segregationist George Wallace. Jackson took to his Twitter Friday evening to post the following:

New Interim Education Commissioner Pam Stewart will hit the ground running. On Friday, a few hours after it was announced she would take the position, it was announced Stewart would attend education summits being held by Rep. Janet Adkins, R-Fernandina Beach, in Yulee and Jacksonville on Monday.

The Florida Council of 100 congratulated Pam Stewart on her appointment as Interim Commissioner of Education on Friday. Stewart was unanimously elected to the position by the State Board of Education after Tony Bennett's resignation on Thursday.

U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., joined fellow congressmen on Friday to sponsor the Justice for Fort Hood and Little Rock Heroes Act to ensure servicemen wounded in the Fort Hood attack and in the attack at a recruiting station in Little Rock receive the same benefits as members of the military wounded in combat.

On Friday, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., voted for a bill which ensures any regulation with an economic impact of more than $100 million is voted on for Congress. The Republican-controlled House passed the REINS Act on Friday and sent it to the Senate. Job creators are being suffocated by the cost of complying with a never-ending onslaught of complex and unnecessary regulations, said Buchanan. Todays legislation will help cut through the red tape, giving small businesses the tools they need to expand and hire new workers.

Dominic M. Calabro, president and CEO of independent government watchdog Florida TaxWatch, was among the first Friday to congratulate Interim Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart. "Florida TaxWatch welcomes Pam Stewart ... as we continue to stand by our support of the Common Core State Standards and increased accountability measures for Florida's schools," Calabro said in a written release.