A former employee of the National Restaurant Association claimed Monday that Herman Cain reached under her dress and pulled her head toward his crotch in a car 11 years ago. Sharon Bialek, who worked for the NRA's education foundation from 1996-97, said she had contacted Cain in an attempt to land another job after her termination from the association. Bialek's attorney, Gloria Allred, said Cain provided "his idea of a stimulus package."

The eight GOP presidential candidates on the Florida's Presidential Preference Primary ballotare scheduled tobe on stage together at Wofford College in Spartanburg, S.C., for a debate on Saturday. Want to ask them a question? National Journal, which is hosting the event with CBS News, is soliciting questions on Facebook and Twitter that may be asked of the candidates. The debate gets underway at 8 p.m.

A USA Today/Gallup poll released on Monday found a tight battle in the race for the Republican presidential nomination with two candidates tied atop of it. Businessman Herman Cain and former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts lead the pack with 21 percent each. Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich stands in third place with 12 percent with Texas Gov. Rick Perry right behind him with 11 percent. The rest of the pack trails in the single digits.

House Democratic ranking member Betty Reed, D-Tampa, wants the Florida Board of Governors to reject -- on financial grounds -- letting the University of South Florida's Polytechnic campus in Lakeland become an independent public university. The board is scheduled to discuss on Wednesday breaking off the Polk County campus into the states 12th institution during the first day of a two-day meeting at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.

Sharpening her attack on "crony capitalism," GOP presidential candidate Michele Bachmann said she would "veto any new law which seeks to impose unconstitutional regulation under the commerce clause." "They're not even good at hiding it anymore," the Minnesota congresswoman said of pork-barreling lawmakers and the Obama administration. Citing $550 million of taxpayer dollars lost in the Solyndra boondoggle, Bachmann reiterated her pledge to shut down five Cabinet level departments and return money and authority to the states.

Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania announced on Monday that his bid for the Republican presidential nomination had won the backing of one of the most prominent conservatives in Iowa -- Chuck Laudner. Iowa is the home of the first presidential caucus. Laudner has been executive director of the state Republican Party and in charge of Iowa for Freedom, the conservative political organization that in 2010 helped remove three state Supreme Court justices who backed same-sex marriage.

The average gallon of gas in Florida stood at $3.41 this weekend, down 3 cents from a week ago, according to AAA Florida. The dip comes as European leaders and the G-20 sought to resolve Europe's debt issues, causing concerns that put downward pressure on oil prices, stated AAA spokeswoman Jessica Brady. Meanwhile, the market did see a small rally after the U.S. Labor Department reported the unemployment rate dropped to 9 percent in October from 9.1 percent in September, Brady noted.

The Florida Retail Federation (FRF) came out swinging on Monday against a proposal to expand casino gambling in the Sunshine State. Florida has a healthy and vibrant retail economy that is driven by residents and visitors alike, Rick McAllister, FRF president and CEO, said in a statement released on Monday. We dont believe new resort casinos will help our states retail economy grow. In fact, theres a lot of evidence that suggests the destination resorts that are being proposed will hurt the businesses already here.

U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas scored a big win in the 2012 Illinois Republican Pre-Presidential Straw Poll which closed on Saturday. The event, which was open to Illinois voters who paid $5 to the state GOP, drew almost 3,650 voters online and in person. Balloting was open for a week.

Tea party conventioneers in Daytona Beach defied conventional wisdom by casting most of their straw poll votes for Herman Cain and Newt Gingrich this past weekend. Unfazed by the 20-year-old allegations of sexual harassment against Cain, tea partiers gave the Georgia businessman 50 percent of the 450 ballots cast. Gingrich, who places far back in the national polls, was second with 23 percent. All other GOP presidential hopefuls, including presumptive front-runner Mitt Romney, finished in single digits.

Anti-Islam activist Pamela Geller took on radical Muslims and the mainstream media during a fiery speech at a tea party convention in Daytona Beach over the weekend. As expected, she assailed the Council on American-Islamic Relations for its alleged ties to the terrorist organization Hamas. Then Geller extended her critique to the mainstream media, asserting that reporters are "taking their talking points and their cues from the Muslim Brotherhood, pimping their anti-American hate and spinning it into 'news coverage.'"

Assailing what it called "insulting comments" from state lawmakers, the Seminole Tribe vowed on Sunday to oppose a proposed casino bill at the Florida Legislature. We will vigorously fight against any attack on our [gaming] compact with the state, said Seminole Tribal Chairman James Billie. We urge Florida legislators to step forward in support of our compact and refuse to pass any legislation that violates contractual agreements with the Seminole Tribe.

U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, is scheduled to be in Jupiter on Nov. 10 to attend a fundraiser for Congressman Tom Rooney, R-Tequesta, at the home of Cheney Brothers' CEO Bryon Russell. In 2008, Russell donated $500 directly to Rooneys first congressional campaign for Florida's 16th District and another $24,154 to the Florida 16 Victory Trust.

Gov. Rick Scott made appointments to the following boards in the past week: Statewide Drug Policy Advisory Council; District Board of Trustees, Broward College; Boating Advisory Council; Construction Industry Licensing Board; Florida Film and Entertainment Advisory Council; Board of Dentistry; Monroe County Housing Authority; Jobs for Floridians with Disabilities; and Florida Transportation Commission. The releases from the governor's office:

Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs wants Gov. Rick Scott to adopt a new policy to prevent people with conflicts of interest serving on the board of the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority. Jacobs,a Republican,wrote a three-page letter to Scott on Thursday to express her concern because in August Scott appointed engineer Scott Batterson to the board. The Orlando Sentinel reported Batterson, a site civil engineer for IBI Group Inc., works for a company that would benefit from construction of the $1.8 billion Wekiva Parkway.