The Department of Labor Statistics unveiled the latest national unemployment figures on Friday and, while there were an additional 227,000 non-farm jobs added to the economy in February, the unemployment rate remained unchanged -- 8.3 percent. There remain almost 13 million unemployed in the United States. But look deeper. The numbers produced on Friday are not exactly reassuring.

With the U.S. unemployment rate stuck at 8.3 percent, the National Federation of Independent Businesses said the job outlook remains cloudy at best. NFIB economist William C. Dunkelberg said the organization's monthly survey showed a mixed bag on Main Street. "For small employers, the net change in employment per firm (seasonally adjusted) was 0.11. This is certainly better than Januarys net zero report and trending in the right direction, but still nothing to get overly excited about," Dunkelberg said.

Mississippi holds its Republican presidential primary on Tuesday and Mitt Romney got a big boost there when he received the endorsement of Gov. Phil Bryant. It is an honor to have the support of Governor Bryant -- he has been a great public servant for the state of Mississippi, said Romney in a statement. His support will be needed to help defeat President Obama in November, repeal Obamacare, and restore fiscal sanity in Washington. I look forward to discussing my pro-growth plan to fix our economy as I campaign in Mississippi.

Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich took aim at Rick Santorum in a new Web video slamming his GOP rivals record on a host of issues.

Gov. Rick Scott is spending Friday morning crisscrossing the states airwaves as part of a last-day push for reform of personal injury protection auto insurance. Theres no reason it cant get done today, Scott told 540 AM WFLA in Orlando. On 1260 AM WFTW in Fort Walton Beach he expressed optimism that compromises can be found in the House and Senate bills.

A priority for several years for Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, is headed to Gov. Rick Scotts desk. The Florida Senate approved SB 4, the Relief of Eric Brody Bill, which will provide $10.75 million to Brody. After more than 13 years, the justice that Eric Brody deserves is finally here, Haridopolos stated in a release. And while no amount of compensation will fully restore what Eric Brody lost, I am proud of the Senate for righting an injustice.

Florida voters will get to decide this November if businesses should get an additional property tax break. The Senate unanimously approved a house resolution, HJR 1003, which calls for a constitutional amendment that would provide exemptions on tangible personal property valued between $25,000 and $50,000. The first $25,000 is already exempt.

The arrival of Disney Cruise Lines' newest ship at Port Canaveral this week drew the excitement of Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday. Great news for Florida's Space Coast: Disney's Newest Cruise Ship is expected to create 500 jobs. SHARE this great news for Port Canaveral! Scott stated on his Facebook page.

The First Amendment Foundation has issued an email blast asking supporters to contact legislative leaders to demand passage of a Senate bill that guarantees the right of Floridians to speak at public meetings of their city councils, school boards, county commissions and before any other elected officials.

A bill crafted as a result of an emotional murder trial last summer in Orlando, was unanimously supported by the Florida Senate on Thursday and is off to the desk of Gov. Rick Scott. HB 37 would require a caregiver to report if any child 16 or younger is missing. Failure to do so would be a third-degree felony, the penalty bumped up to a second-degree felony if the child is harmed while missing.

A billbacked by Attorney General Pam Bondi to reduce timeshare resale fraud is on the way to Gov. Rick Scotts desk for final approval. The bill, SB 1408, seeks to eliminate a loophole Bondi says has allowed scam artists to thrive on people seeking to sell timeshares quickly. This legislation is essential in stopping fraudulent timeshare resale companies from preying on consumers, Bondi stated Thursday in a release.

Another law signed by former Gov. Charlie Crist but that failed to be implemented is headed toward repeal. The Senate voted 35-5 Thursday to send House Bill 4001 to Gov. Rick Scott. The House backed the bill last week.

Gov. Rick Scott, Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater and Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty continued Thursday to put pressure on legislators to advance legislation that would revamp the supposedly low-cost personal injury protection auto insurance known as no-fault insurance. And the message continues to lean on senators to accept the proposal that has been advanced by the House.

While most talk about quarterbacks these days is where Peyton Manning will end up (and please note that, according to CBS Sportsline, the three teams in Florida are in the chase -- and as a Jaguars fan, I would take Peyton over Blaine Gabbert), another star NFL QB made news on Thursday for a different reason.

Waiting for the Senate to advance a number of bills, the House has delayed the start of its floor session until 4 p.m. "Because we have so few returning messages to take up, and in the hopes that we will receive additional returning messages from the Senate this afternoon, House session will begin today at 4 p.m.," wrote House Rules and Calendar Committee Chairman Rep. Gary Aubuchon, R-Cape Coral.