Bush-era bigshot Karl Rove took a poke at fellow Republicans Sarah Palin and Mike Huckabee Friday, telling a national audience, if this pair think they can do a better job than the Bushes, they should get into the presidential race officially and prove it. Interviewed on Laura Ingraham's radio show, the former political consultant to George W. Bush said it isn't doing Palin or Huckabee any good to criticize a family within their party that has produced two presidents.

Sunday marks the one year anniversary of Cuba arresting U.S. citizen Alan Gross, who was a contractor for the U.S. State Department assigned to distribute communication devices to the residents of that nation -- which is exactly why authorities in Cuba arrested him. From Philip Crowley, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. State Department:

The St. Johns River has always been a two-edged sword when it comes to Jacksonvilles maritime ambitions. One of the big political issues in Florida during the 19th century was clearing the massive sandbar in the river that made Fernandina Beach the chief port in the Northeastern part of the state for most of that period and led Whigs and Republicans to demand government money to clear the river in the name of internal improvements.

When President Obama pardoned two turkeys on Thanksgiving, he was just warming up.

Republican U.S. Rep. Connie Mack weighed in on the nations continuing high unemployment on Friday -- taking aim at President Barack Obama and, in a sign the Florida congressman has his eye on the U.S. Senate election in 2012, Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.

Incoming Gov. Rick Scott unveiled his Good Government Transition Team on Friday. Scott has charged them with three tasks: finding ways to reduce the government, discovering more effective operations procedures, and providing better service. "I'm excited to have such a distinguished and experienced team working with me to make good government a top priority in my administration," said Scott. The Good Government Transition Team includes: Brian Cunningham, President, J Strategies. Michelle Robinson, President, Southeast Region, Verizon.

Michael Jordan is building a 28,000-square-foot home in Jupiter, according to Golf.com. The home sits on a 3-acre site 10 miles away from Tiger Woods' home on Jupiter Island. The NBA great and Charlotte Bobcats owner paid $4.6 million for the land and $7.6 million for the construction.

Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, has reached a settlement with the Florida Commission on Ethics over a complaint brought against him alleging he deliberately omitted items on his financial disclosure statements. Haridopolos has admitted the errors, but maintains they were honest mistakes. The commission has no authority to penalize the senator, but the complaint will now be forwarded to the Senate Rules Committee for review, which could suggest a fine.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney hammered the Obama administration and Democrats on Friday for not backing extending tax cuts supported by George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003 to all Americans -- and pointed to the newly released national unemployment rate as to why all Americans needed tax breaks.

As he starts his last full month as attorney general, Bill McCollum released the 2009 Florida Hate Crimes Report. McCollum announced that hate crimes had reached their lowest level in Florida since 1990 when reporting began, with 148 such incidents occurring in the Sunshine State. The average year since 1990 saw 262 such hate crimes reported each year.

Incoming U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, ripped into the Obama administrations economic programs. Any sign of job growth in this struggling economy is encouraging, but clearly no match for the uncertainty families and small businesses are facing, which is why we must cut spending and stop all the looming tax hikes, said Boehner on Friday morning after review numbers showed thatnational unemployment rose to 9.8 percent in November.

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan released a video in which he condemned any plans to grant amnesty for illegal aliens. Buchanan also stressed that English needs to be the official national language. There is increasing speculation that Buchanan may join what could be a crowded Republican primary field looking to take on Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.

More bad news on the unemployment rate. On Friday morning, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent for November -- an increase from Octobers 9.6 percent figure. During November, 390,000 more Americans lost their jobs, raising the number to a total of 15.1 million Americans out of work. One big concern has to be the loss of 28,000 retail jobs during November as the holiday shopping season kicks off.

While South Florida U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz was not named to lead the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, she ended up with two leadership positions in the House. On Thursday, Wasserman Schultz was named vice chairwoman of the House Democrats Steering and Policy Committee. She was also tapped by Nancy Pelosi to another tenure as chief Democratic whip.

As the lame-duck Congress fiddles over tax cuts (or increases), the IRS is counting down the days to new withholding tables. Brace yourself. If lawmakers don't make a decision within 10 days -- an increasingly likely prospect -- the IRS says it will set 2011 withholding schedules based on the assumption that all Bush tax cuts will expire on Dec. 31. The H&R Block Tax Institute estimates that will mean a couple with a household income of $80,000 will see their bimonthly paycheck shrink by $221.48 as higher withholding kicks in. Upset yet?