According to the Associated Press, Gov. Charlie Crist has changed his mind about considering oil drilling off the coast of Florida following a flight over the Gulf of Mexico. The governor said he was horrified by the 80-by-42 mile oil spill caused by the collapse of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig last week. He called the oil slick "ginormous." Initially he opposed oil drilling. But within the past year the governor changed his position and until recently said he was willing to consider drilling off Florida's coast if it could be done safely.

Fair-skinned, shimmering blond Ann Coulter chided U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio, a Cuban American, for his support of a federal solution to the increasing immigration problem faced by states. During a turn on The O'Reilly Factor Friday night, Coulter defended Arizona's immigration bill and said she was upset that Karl Rove and Rubio seemed to find fault with it.

The House just passed the final budget on a 77-43 vote. The vote reflected party lines save for one lone Democrat. Nope, it wasnt Debbie Boyd or Leonard Bembry or Joseph Abruzzo. It was Darryl Rouson from St. Petersburg. The $70.4 billion budget now heads to the Senate.

Talk about rapid response! Jeff Greene's campaign team responded quickly to Kendrick Meek's attack on their candidate. "Another smear by another career politician," said Paul Blank, a spokesman for Greene's campaign. Noting that Greene had taken on Wall Street over his career in business, Blank said, "The fact is that Kendrick Meek's statement is a complete and utter smear." Blank stressed that Greene was an outsider, not a career politician like the other leading candidates in the race, even offering insight into Greene's past.

Looks like U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, the favorite to win the Democratic U.S. Senate nomination, is ready to mix it up with Jeff Greene, the billionaire businessman who jumped into the race earlier today. Meek came out blasting Greene's record in making money off failed mortgages.

Testing the rails for a proposed high-speed, intercity commuter line, an Amtrak train will make a one-day, one-way run from Miami to Jacksonville on Saturday. The "Amtrak-Florida East Coast Inspection Train" departs NW 1st Avenue in Miami at 8:30 a.m. and makes nine brief stops en route to Jacksonville, where it is scheduled to arrive at 5:25 p.m. Some 150 dignitaries, economic-development officials and journalists will be aboard. Intermediate stops will be at:

Friday, as oil from a massive spill in the gulf coast nears, and reportedly reaches the United States coastline, Governor Charlie Crist declared a state of emergency. The Deepwater Horizon oil drilling facility exploded last week sending hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil into the ocean. Crist declared the emergency due to the potential danger that could be caused by the spill. The state of emergency applies to Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay and Gulf counties.

Republican Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite announced today that she will not seek a fifth term to the U.S. House due to health concerns. With today being the last day to file for federal office, Brown-Waite threw her support to Hernando County Sheriff Richard Nugent. From Spring Hill, Nugent has served as sheriff since first winning election back in 2000. Conservative activist Jason Sager, who was planning to challenge Brown-Wait in the G.O.P primary, will remain in the race despite the new opponent. The winner will likely face Democrat Jim Piccollo, a businessman and veteran of the 101st Airborne .

Rep. Kendrick Meeks Senate campaign is forwarding an email from former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, endorsing Meek. In response to a joke he made earlier in the week, Dean said he was not backing Gov. Charlie Crists independent bid. But it looks like the old Dean team is divided. A number of staffers from Deans 2004 presidential bid, including strategist Joe Trippi, are running billionaire Jeff Greenes Senate campaign.

Just when you thought the U.S. Senate race could not get more dramatic, billionaire Jeff Greene, who made his fortune in real estate, filed papers this morning to run for the Democratic nomination. Greene had had a colorful life to say the least-he waited tables at the Breakers growing up and the best man at his wedding was Mike Tyson. Yes, that Mike Tyson. U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek is the favorite in the race with former Miami Mayor Maurice Ferre and former North Miami Mayor Kevin Burns also in the race.

In an early test of organizational strength and ability, U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio will be in Clearwater Friday to thank his volunteers. The former House speaker's appearance, a day after Gov. Charlie Crist announced he was bowing out of the Republican primary, is clearly designed as an in-your-face challenge to the governor in his home county of Pinellas. Rubio's Pinellas County headquarters is at ?1230 Myrtle Ave. South in ?Clearwater.

Attorney General Bill McCollum, the leading Republican gubernatorial candidate, spoke out against Gov. Charlie Crist leaving the G.O.P. to continue his campaign for the U.S. Senate as an independent. While not surprised by his decision, I am deeply disappointed Governor Crist has left the Republican Party, said McCollum. It is a short-sighted maneuver that directly contradicts his previous pledges to remain in the primary race.

Republicans are weighing in on Gov. Charlie Crists decision to abandon the Republican Party to continue running for the U.S. Senate as an independent. At a time when people are demanding a return to conservative values Charlie Crist headed the opposite direction, said Holly Benson, a candidate for attorney general who Crist appointed to head the Agency for Health Administration. Now, he has abandoned not just our values but also the party faithful the leaders, the volunteers and the voters who helped him every step of the way.

Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp may have been Crists running mate in 2006, but he is off the Crist band wagon in 2010. I hope the Governor's decision today to run for the United States Senate as an independent candidate, rather than as a Republican, will have no impact on our personal relationship, said Kottkamp. However, as a lifelong Republican I am committed to supporting my party and the principles I have fought for my entire life. I will support the Republican nominee for United States Senate.

In the middle of a furious debate on whether to require pregnant women seeking an abortion in their first trimester to submit to an ultrasound, a lone Republican male decided to stand up in opposition to the controversial amendment attached to a health care bill in the final days of session That man's name? Sen. Mike Bennett. His district? Bradenton. His self-described one-time profession? "Drunken sailor."