Conservative new media publisher and pundit Andrew Breitbart died overnight at the age of 43. His website had the following posting on Thursday morning: With a terrible feeling of pain and loss we announce the passing of Andrew Breitbart. Andrew passed away unexpectedly from natural causes shortly after midnight this morning in Los Angeles.

The Senate majority office on Thursday issued a release praising Senate Republicans' work "to lessen tax burdens on Floridians and foster a healthy atmosphere for businesses and the careers they bring. The Senate Budget Subcommittee on Finance and Tax yesterday took up several bills which provide tax relief to businesses and families."

President Obama nominated Judge Brian J. Davis to serve on the U.S. District Court in Florida, just as another seat is opening in the Southern District Davis, who would serve in the Middle District of Florida, was tapped Wednesday to replace Richard A. Lazzara, a Bill Clinton appointee of 1997. Lazzara, who is taking "senior status," achieved a bit of notoriety in 2008 when he upheld the right of the Democratic National Committee to strip Florida delegates of their voting powers in a contest over the state's early presidential primary.

U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement objecting to the city council of Galway (Ireland)proposal to erect a monument in honor of Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara. Despite the image makeover which some try to give him, the real Che Guevara was a mass murderer and human rights abuser. To honor him with a monument would be an outrage, and would be a futile attempt to hide the brutal acts which he committed.

The Florida Supreme Court has disciplined 17 attorneys, with five disbarred and eight suspended, the Florida Bar announced. Some attorneys received more than one discipline. One attorney's license was placed on probation, four received public reprimands and one was ordered to pay restitution. According to a Florida Bar release:

The House approved a number of memorial bills late Wednesday directed to make federal officials know the majority opinions of Floridas lawmakers. Among the bills backed in the Republican-dominated House were:

Anyone on federal assistance will be prohibited from using their state-issued debit card-style assistance cards at ATMs located in strip clubs, Internet cafes and liquor stores, under a bill that rolled toward a final decision before the full House late Wednesday.

Students would be allowed to run their own inspirational prayer session, regardless of the message, at school events under a Senate bill that was moved toward a third and final vote by the Florida House on Wednesday. The bill, SB 98, would allow school districts to adopt resolutions that let students use inspirational messages, without backing or influence from the district or district employees, at school-sanctioned exercises or assemblies.

The Florida House of Representatives on Friday will introduce a resolution honoring the state's electrical lineworkers, designating Aug. 26 "Lineworker Appreciation Day," according to the Florida Municipal Electric Association. The date was chosen in honor of Marc Moore, a 31-year-old lineman for Lakeland Electric who died in an electrical accident while working on Aug. 26, 2002.

Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Palm Harbor, says he is "outraged" over the apparent use of taxpayer money to provide Guantanamo Bay detainees with a "state of the art" soccer field and exercise facilities. America is in a fiscal crisis and this is a time in which every taxpayer dollar must be used efficiently and effectively. This certainly is not the best use of those dollars, said Bilirakis, a member of the House Homeland Security Committee. Department of Defense dollars should be used to protect our nation, not to entertain detainees.

Proposed Senate districts came under fire at the Florida Supreme Court Wednesday as critics sought to overturn the Legislature's reappointment plans. Some justices appeared receptive to the arguments, but Chief Justice Charles Canady expressed skepticism during the hearing that ran more than three hours. See full story upcoming at Sunshine State News.

Gov. Rick Scott has reappointed Alia Faraj and appointed Sean S. Hall to the Florida Elections Commission. According to a release from the governors office: Faraj, 47, of Tallahassee, has been a partner and executive vice president of Ron Sachs Communications since 2007.

It's not often you find Republicans and environmental groups working for the same goal, but as that noted conservative Bob Dylan once said, "Money doesn't talk, it screams." And in this case, it's screaming about the aftermath of BP's Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Sen. J.D. Alexander, R-Lake Wales, just completed his farewell address on the Senate floor, advising senators that his future will be back on the citrus groves and not in the state university he has pushed to create in Lakeland. Im going to go home and raise oranges, as I know how to do, Alexander said. Alexander, who heads the powerful Senate Budget Committee, will be term-limited from office this year.

Mary McLeod Bethune, Claude Denson Pepper and Charles Kenzie Steele were all posthumouslyinducted into the Florida Civil Rights Hall of Fame in the first floor rotunda of the Florida Capitol on Wednesday. The hall is located on the inside wall immediately to the left of the Capitol's eastern entry, as one walks toward the governor's office.