While congressional Republicans in the U.S. House have already scheduled a bill to repeal federal health-care laws that passed last year, Florida Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson is firing back -- arguing that repealing the laws would hurt more senior citizens on Medicaid.

In his inaugural address earlier in the day, Gov. Rick Scott vowed to issue an executive order creating the Office of Fiscal Accountability and Regulatory Reform to review regulations in the Sunshine State -- and he did that in his first minutes in office. The order also prohibited agencies from offering regulations without the approval of the new office. The order also authorizes the state to review any contract of more than $1 million.

Marco Rubio says he wants to hit the ground running from day one of his U.S. Senate term. Roughly 24 hours before being sworn in as Florida's newest senator, Rubio announced the names of those he has hired as key staff members. He also said he will open five regional offices around the state to serve as centers for constituent casework. Those offices will be located in Pensacola, Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando and Miami. Rubio expects about 5,000 cases to come through those offices this year.

Moments after being sworn in, Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Adam Putnam weighed in on his new position in an e-mail to supporters. Today begins a new chapter for the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and I am excited to hit the ground running as Floridas commissioner of agriculture, wrote Putnam.

Gov. Rick Scott will tackle Florida's 12 percent unemployment rate as one of his top priorities, and outlined his plans to cut out government interference in the private sector in his inaugural speech Tuesday. "Only the private sector can provide prosperity. Only the private sector," Scott said. He decried taxation, regulation and litigation as the "axis of unemployment," evoking former President George W. Bush's controversial "axis of evil" line.

Rick Scott has been sworn in as the governor of Florida. Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles T. Canady administered the oath of office, which Scott took on his family Bible, held by his wife, Ann.

Rick Scott is still waiting to be sworn in as Florida's governor, and so is his website. A "Coming Soon" message greets those who want to see the official Florida governor's website.

Jennifer Carroll, Pam Bondi, Adam Putnam and Jeff Atwater have been sworn in as Florida's lieutenant governor, attorney general, commissioner of agriculture and consumer services, andchief financial officer, respectively. The swearing in of Gov.-elect Rick Scott will follow.

Rick Scott's decision to include Imam Enrique Rasheed at Tuesday's Prayer Breakfast came under fire from a group called the Florida Security Council. Here is executive director Tom Trentos open letter to Scott: "As a conservative Republican, you have my support as you undertake the extremely difficult job of getting Florida back to work. "As a leader on national and state terrorism issues, you may be losing my support as a result of your decision to have Imam Enrique Rasheed participate in your solemn inauguration on Jan. 4, 2011.

Gov. Charlie Crist and Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp will witness the transition of power from their administration to Gov.-elect Rick Scott's administration. They have been announced at the swearing-in ceremony in Tallahassee Tuesday, as have Scott, Lt. Gov.-elect Jennifer Carroll, Attorney General-elect Pam Bondi, Chief Financial Officer-elect Jeff Atwater and Agriculture Commissioner-elect Adam Putnam. Scott, Carroll and his Cabinet members will be sworn in to office within the next two hours.

U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney was selected Tuesday to serve as a Republican deputy whip for the 112th Congress. The Tequesta Republican was the only second-term member to be tapped for the job. Rooney was selected by Majority Whip-elect Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif, who said, In his first two years in the House, Congressman Rooney displayed the hard work and leadership that will make him a valuable asset as a deputy whip."

An ecumenical prayer breakfast was held Tuesday morning at Florida A&M University in Tallahassee as the curtain-raiser to Gov.-elect Rick Scott's swearing-in ceremony later in the day. The keynote speaker, Chuck Colson --one of the Watergate Seven who later founded Prison Ministries --called for the infusion of virtue and ethics into public and community life. He encouraged the audience to take personal responsibility for their happiness and not rely on government to solve every problem.

Eleven Florida school districts have been approved to begin receiving local Race to the Top funding, the state Department of Education announced Tuesday. Grant award notices totaling more than $25 million were sent to districts in Alachua, Calhoun, Clay, DeSoto, Gulf, Hendry, Holmes, Manatee, Pasco, Putnam and Washington. DOE said applications for the remaining 55 grant-eligible districts are being evaluated on an ongoing basis with award notices going out as the approvals occur. All remaining award notices are expected to be issued by the end of the month.

Rick Scott's inaugural prayer breakfast was an ecumenical affair Tuesday. In addition to the usual priests, reverends and rabbis, speakers included Jacksonville Imam Enrique Rasheed, who read from the Quran with a Southern accent. The primary preacher was Watergate conspirator-turned-prison chaplain Chuck Colson, who called the current political environment "ugly." As an antidote, Colson urged the revival of "the great republican virtue: a sense of civic duty."

The state's biggest labor union, the Florida Education Association, is asking teachers to wear red on Tuesday "to show solidarity for public schools." The red alert is no early Valentine for incoming Gov. Rick Scott, but rather a reminder of the hard-fought battle over Senate Bill 6 -- and a warning to the GOP governor on Inauguration Day. "This is a time that we must continue to work together as educators in Floridas public schools, as we stood together for Senate Bill 6," St. Lucie County union president Vanessa Tillman stated in an e-mail Monday.