Continuing her bid for the Republican presidential nomination, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota brought in two veteran Republican operatives on her campaign team on Monday. Bachmann named Ron Thomas as a senior adviser to help with her efforts in South Carolina while Guy Short was named national political director.

The Occupy Wall Street movement is heading to Floridas Capitol. Occupy Tallahassee has posted on its Facebook page that peaceful protests against corporate greed are planned for Oct. 14 and 15 at the state Capitol. With an eye on the evening news cycle, the Occupy Tallahassee webpage advised those who intend to join the protest to be on the lawn before 5 p.m.

Naples could be one of the locations for Florida headquarters of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange if the derivatives exchange outfit relocates, Gov. Rick Scott told the Naples Daily News editorial board Friday. My understanding is the Chicago Mercantile Exchange is going to move 2,000 jobs, the newspaper quoted Scott. Theyre either going to Texas or Florida. Theres no reason that type of job cant be in the Naples, Fort Myers area.

FormerU.S. Sen. Mel Martinez, a Republican from Orlando, has endorsed and will serve as a national adviser for Republican presidential contenderMitt Romney. I have great confidence that Mitt Romney is the candidate to get our country back on track, Martinez stated in arelease from Romneys campaign.Unemployment remains a pressing issue both in Florida and across the nation. Now, more than ever, we need a leader who will get our countrys fiscal house in order.

U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas scored a boost of momentum in his quest for the Republican presidential nomination this weekend when he won the Values Voter Straw Poll today in impressive fashion, running away with the victory with 37 percent of the vote. Businessman Herman Cain placed second in the straw poll of conservative Christians with 23 percent, while former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania came in third with 16 percent.

NFL players, owners and executives, and spouses contributed at least $1.4 million to federal candidates and political committees since January 2009, according to a study by the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Responsive Politics. About two-thirds of the money went to the GOP, according to the center, which is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research group that tracks money in politics.

U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, and six other House Republicans, including presidential candidate Ron Paul, R-Texas, and Virginia Foxx, R-North Carolina, say membersbenefits shouldnt carry on to their heirs if they die while in office. Currently, the United States pays a full year's salary to the family of a representative who dies while in office. The original intent was for the payment to serve as some form of life insurance. Posey, in a release, says members of Congress should pay for their own life insurance.

Jacksonville is set to be the next Florida battleground for presidential candidates, according to a press release issued Saturday by the Republican Party of Florida. After consultation with campaigns and Republican officials, the RPOF and CNN have selected Jan. 26 in the northeastern Florida city as the date for the CNN/RPOF Republican Debate.

A former judge has outed the U.S. immigration court system as a judicial sieve that allows illegal aliens to run free. Mark H. Metcalf, in a 100-page study titled "Built to Fail: Deception and Disorder in America's Immigration Courts," reports that:

Robert A. Gualtieri has been named interim sheriff of Pinellas County by Gov. Rick Scott. He will replace Sheriff Jim Coats whohad announced he will step down Nov. 8. Coats' wife is battling breast cancer. Gualtieri, who is among seven campaigning for the office in 2012, has been the chief deputy for the Pinellas County sheriffs office since 2006.

Gov. Rick Scott reasserted Friday his campaign pledge to create 700,000 jobs in seven years. In a release posted on the governors website Friday, Scott responded to critics who have questioned if he had changed his seven-step economic campaign promise. Several Florida newspapers have recently pointed out that on the campaign trail, Scott had said the jobs would be in addition to normal growth. Read the entire release below: Statement from Governor Rick Scott: 700,000 jobs in Seven Years: Setting the Record Straight.

Florida State University students will be asked next week to urge FSU President Eric Barron to refuse further increases in tuition. A tuition increase referendum is on the ballot as part of the Student Government Association's elections on Wednesday. Tuition was raised 15 percent for in-state undergraduate students at all 11 public universities in the spring.

Unemployment held at 9.1 percent for September, with roughly 14 million listed as unemployed, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employers added 103,000 workers, mostly in health care and other professional services, due in part to 45,000 telecommunications workers returning to payrolls after being on strike in August. Meanwhile, federal, state and local government jobs continue to be cut, dropping 34,000 in September. The U.S. Postal Service eliminated 5,000 positions.

Businessman and author Herman Cain has opened a 20-point lead over the rest of the Republican field and he would be the only GOP candidate to defeat President Obama if the election were held today, according to the latest IBOPE Zogby interactive poll. The numbers offer a vastly different snapshot from other polls released this week.

Leading the pack of Republican presidential hopefuls in most national polls, former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts continued to build in Florida this week as he unveiled his finance team for the Sunshine State on Thursday. I am proud to announce my Florida finance team, said Romney in a statement. Having the resources to go up against President Obama and his billion-dollar campaign will be necessary for success in November 2012. Their hard work will be crucial to my efforts in Florida and across the country.