GOP presidential hopeful Jon Huntsman said Friday that the National Labor Relations Board decision to drop its lawsuit against Boeing "was a victory in a battle that should have never been fought." The NLRB filed a complaint against Boeing in March accusing the aerospace company of establishing a nonunion production line in South Carolina in retaliation against union workers in Washington state for past strikes, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The governor's office has declared Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll's trade mission to South Africa a "booming success." The Carroll-led nine-day trade mission with Enterprise Florida from Nov. 4-13 is expected to create nearly $40 million in sales for Florida, the governor's office reported.

The Florida Transportation Builders Association has sided with the business interest groups backing the destination casino bill that would establish a statewide gaming commission and allow a trio of mega, $2 billion casinos. Robert Burleson, Association president, in a letter to Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, the sponsor of the Senate bill on destination gaming, stated that the association's board of directors views the casinos --along the potential construction and full-time jobs --as an enhancement to the South Florida area.

With reports continuing this week that U.S. Air Force personnel discarded the partial remains of at least 274 American service members in a landfill, Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan demanded a full investigation. Reports have found that personnel at the Charles C. Carson Center for Mortuary Affairs at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware -- the initial stop on American soil for the remains of service members killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq -- have dumped the cremated remains in a Virginia landfill.

On Friday, Republican presidential hopeful former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania gained a big boost for his campaign when he received the endorsement of Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz. Santorum has campaigned hard in the Hawkeye State, which holds its caucus on Jan. 3, and has appeared in all 99 counties in the state. Schultz becomes the first statewide elected official to back any of the GOP hopefuls.

Having won the Iowa Republican straw poll in Ames back in August, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota has a lot riding on the Hawkeye State. A poor showing there will essentially doom her longshot bid at the Republican presidential nomination. Having a campaign organization in place has always been key to doing well in Iowa and Bachmann appears to have a solid one in place. On Friday, the congresswoman announced that her team had county chairs in 91 of the 99 counties in Iowa and had precinct leaders in every county.

Florida Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has drawn fire from the right. Over at the American Conservative, conservative columnist and former presidential candidate Pat Buchanan blasts Rubio for pushing a measure to allow Georgia into NATO. Buchanan also praises the senator who stopped Rubios push -- fellow freshman Republican U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.

It doesn't appear Lee County voters will join their counterparts in Gadsden, Hamilton and possibly Palm Beach counties early next year in deciding if local gambling options should be expanded. The Fort Myers News-Press reports that Champion Development, the company seeking to build a gaming resort along I-75, has been told its too late in the process to get the issue on the Jan. 31, 2012 ballot.

Gov. Rick Scott and members of the Enterprise Florida entourage on a trade mission to Israel are scheduled to visit the Western Wall, also known as the Wailing Wall, in the Old City of Jerusalem at 5 p.m. Friday, Israel Standard Time. The 48-member delegation -- that also includes Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, Sen. Maria Sachs, D-Delray, and Judy Genshaft, University of South Florida president -- departed from Florida Thursday.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry takes off the gloves to rip into President Barack Obama and two of his opponents -- former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney -- in a new television commercial.

Thomas R. Tommy Hardee, an insurance agent and volunteer fireman, has been named the interim replacement for suspended Madison County Supervisor of Elections Jada Woods Williams. The governors office announced Thursday that Hardee, 37 and a Republican, had been appointed by Gov. Rick Scott to serve as the countys election supervisor.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam came out against expanded resort gaming in the Sunshine State on Thursday. What makes Florida special is our world-class natural resources and our international, family-friendly attractions. These resources are what is at stake in this debate about the expansion of gambling in Florida, Putnam said in a statement. Allowing Vegas-style casinos to come to Florida would hinder the states future economic development, would threaten the safety and security of our communities and would not benefit Floridas families.

The Everglades Foundation says Gov. Rick Scott understands the need to protect the Florida Everglades by more than doubling his proposed funding for restoration efforts. We know Governor Scott has to face tough choices in making his budget recommendations, Kirk Fordham, Everglades Foundation CEO, stated in a release. The fact that Governor Scott is willing to more than double his previous request for Everglades funding demonstrates his understanding that protecting the Everglades and our water supply is a necessary ingredient to growing our states economy.

Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, now in a crowded Republican primary to take on Democrat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, took aim at the incumbents support of opening a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention Center in Southwest Ranches. LeMieuxs team noted that Nelson supported the detention center in April -- and has not changed his mind despite local residents opposing it.

Attorney and conservative activist Will McBride, who took 30 percent of the Republican primary vote when he challenged Katherine Harris for the GOP nod for the Senate nomination in 2006, announced on Thursday that he is backing former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner in the crowded primary to take on Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.