Florida will have the third largest congressional delegation in 2012, but that apparently counts for little with the old-school politicians in Washington, D.C. With three-quarters of the "supercommittee" appointments announced, the Sunshine State has been shut out so far, while Rust Belt states are represented far beyond their shrinking population. On Wednesday, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, announced his three selections to the 12-member budget panel: Reps. Jeb Hensarling of Texas, and Dave Camp and Fred Upton, both of Michigan.

Barney Bishop announced his resignation Wednesday as CEO of Associated Industries of Florida, effective Dec. 31. He will remain a consultant for AIF in 2012. He said he was pleased with his accomplishments at AIF and decided it was time to move on to another venture (as yet unannounced).

On Wednesday, former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner, now running for the Republican nomination to take on Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, announced that he was signing the term-limit pledge backed by U.S. Term Limits, an organization out of Virginia.

Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Connie Mack said on Wednesday that he intended to introduce a measure of no-confidence against U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. Mack has been calling for months for Geithners resignation.

On Wednesday, the American Conservative Union (ACU) revealed that the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) event held in Orlando in September will feature a straw poll for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.

U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., is taking part in a fundraiser with U.S. Sen. Majority Harry Reid, D-Nev., in Lake Tahoe later this month and Craig Miller is not happy about it. Miller,the former Ruth's Chris CEO who is now running in the Republican primary to challenge Nelson, took off the gloves on Wednesday and ripped into Nelson.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the defending champion of the Iowa Republican presidential caucus, will be heading back to the Hawkeye State on Saturday to take part in the straw poll in Ames. The former presidential candidate will not be making a surprise reversal and jumping into the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. Nor will he be making an endorsement.

The team behind former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman promised they would have a major campaign announcement on Tuesday in South Florida. Jeb Bush Jr., the son of the former Florida governor, will endorse Huntsmans bid for the Republican nomination and will serve as national chairman for the campaigns youth outreach. Ana Navarro from Florida will be in charge of Huntsmans Hispanic outreach.

Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, one of the dark horses in the field of candidates battling for the Republican presidential nomination, has made no secret of the importance of his Catholic faith in shaping his political positions. Santorum has taken aim at JFKs celebrated speech to Protestant ministers back in 1960 where the future president vowed to leave his faith out of the Oval Office.

On Monday, Florida Secretary of State Kurt Browning unveiled the Florida Civil War Heritage Trail guidebook. The Florida Civil War Heritage Trail guidebook offers a factual account of the impact that the Civil War had on Floridas communities and families, said Browning. Information presented in this publication provides a valuable educational resource that will enhance our knowledge and understanding of the Florida places, people and events that played a role in this historic struggle.

With all eyes on Iowa, with a debate between the Republican presidential candidates and the straw poll in Ames on Saturday, pundits are starting to make picks about who will prevail.

Tea party activist Robin Stublen has been named deputy director of public liaison for Gov. Rick Scott. Stublen, who started work Aug. 1, will be paid $70,000 a year to coordinate events and oversee a group of special assistants in South Florida. He will be based in Port Charlotte, where he resides. While chairing the Port Charlotte Tea Party, Stublen organized the Save Our State rally on the opening day of the 2011 Legislature. He also helped coordinate Scott's visit to Eustis for the unveiling of the governor's inaugural state budget last winter.

Antitrust concerns may have moved to the back burner with news that Energy Transfer Equity is moving closer to a purchase of the natural-gas pipeline company serving Florida. The Texas-based ETE said it expects to acquire Southern Union Co. in the first quarter of 2012, pending shareholder approval and certain other regulatory approvals. Tulsa-based Williams Cos. also was in the running for Southern Union, and Williams' interest raised antitrust concerns as the company owns another natural-gas pipeline feeding Central Florida.

Politico is reporting that Gov. Rick Perry of Texas will enter the Republican primary race, and will make the announcement during a speech in South Carolina on Saturday. Perrys announcement steals some of the thunder from the Iowa straw poll in Ames which most of the other candidates have been focusing on in recent weeks. Some of the candidates, namely Mitt Romney and Jon Huntsman, are not focusing on the event in Ames, giving an opportunity to the other hopefuls.

While most eyes in Washington were focused on the stalemate and finally the agreement to raise the federal debt ceiling, another story was developing. After almost four years of wrangling, it appears that the U.S. Senate and Congress will be ready to pass pending free-trade agreements (FTAs) with Colombia, Panama and South Korea. It looks like the measures will be passed when Congress returns to Washington in September.