Despite a death in the House and public opposition from its sponsor's home district, a proposal that allows residents to vote on whether to close or continue a Children's Services Council with special taxing authority is continuing to gain ground in the Senate.

Hey, buddy, can you spare an acre? Down here in Fort Pierce, huge swaths of real-estate along U.S. 1 languish where car dealers once thrived. Ditto for other cities across Florida. The automotive clear-out isn't surprising, given the contraction of the car industry.

National Strategies LLC (NSI), a Washington-based consulting group, announced that former House Majority Leader Jerry Maygarden will be added to its Florida operations as an advisor. We are building upon NSIs growth in Florida during the past two years, said Tim Onoff, president of NSI. Leader Maygarden brings tremendous expertise and an in-depth understanding of how Florida state and local governments operate. Maygarden was mayor of Pensacola before serving in the House from 1994 to 2002.

The Times/Herald combo is good at "follow the money" campaign stories. They've been writing them for years, separate or together. There's always that sneering quality in the story's tone when their reporters write about the bad guys donating those Big Bucks to their favorite evil candidates. You can almost see the reporter's lip curl up at the corner.

During Hardball today on MSNBC, Chris Matthews, Chuck Todd and Chris Cillizza talked about the possibility of Gov. Charlie Crist running as an independent candidate for the U.S. Senate and what it would do to his presidential ambitions. Theres also talk about a Marco Rubio presidential campaign in 2012 and, of course, there are always whispers about Jeb Bush's presidential hopes.

The best political ads are hard-hitting, but Gov. Charlie Crist's TV spot attempting to link U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio and disgraced Rep. Ray Sansom went over the top, says a group of Florida Republicans. In a letter to Crist, nine current and former GOP office holders -- all of whom have supported Crist in the past and now back Rubio -- called on the governor's campaign to stop airing the ad.

More bad news from the Florida Department of Workforce Innovation. While the national unemployment rate remained at 9.7 percent for the second month in a row, Floridas unemployment continues to creep up, moving from a record high of 12.2 percent for February 2010 to 12.3 percent for March 2010. In March 2009, unemployment stood at 9.6 percent, meaning almost 150,000 Floridians lost their jobs in the last year.

Sen. John Thrasher, chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, told Sunshine State News on Friday morning that he does not intend to resurrect his teacher performance pay bill this session. "Right now, we've got two weeks left, and I've got a budget to do," Thrasher said only moments before the Senate legislative session convened.

With Gov. Charlie Crist vetoing the teacher performance pay bill, prominent Florida Republicans have started abandoning Crists bid for the U.S. Senate. Rep. Dean Cannon, R-Winter Park, who takes over as speaker next year, and Rep. John Tobia, R-Melbourne, withdrew their endorsements of Crists Senate bid, and the Capitol is abuzz that there are more to come. Former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack resigned as chairman of the Crist campaign last night. In his letter to Crist resigning the position, Mack wrote that Crists veto was the chief reason.

So you think you know who Tea Partiers are? Not so fast! Take a look at Lane Wright's coverage of the "We the People" rally Thursday in front of the Old Capitol in Tallahassee. And then you decide.

While Rick Scott is best known for his opposition to President Barack Obamas health-care plan, the Republican gubernatorial candidates conservative positions extend to other issues as well. While Scott has not released a statement about Gov. Charlie Crists veto of teacher performance pay legislation, Jennifer Coxe-Baker, the media contact for Scotts fledgling campaign, said on Thursday night that he would have signed the measure.

Get ready, America: We're heading to Mars. During his Thursday speech at the Kennedy Space Center, President Barack Obama took a swing at critics who have questioned his space plans, according to the Associated Press. Not only is Obama "100 percent committed to the mission of NASA and its future," he said, but he also expects to see Americans land on Mars in his lifetime. Chant with me now: USA! USA!

Attorney General Bill McCollum linked Gov. Charlie Crist to Democratic gubernatorial frontrunner and state CFO Alex Sink in his statement on Crists veto of teacher performance pay and pledged, if elected, to continue to fight for the idea. I am deeply disappointed Gov. Crist succumbed to the pressure from Democrat Alex Sink and the unions by putting bureaucracy above the best interest of our children and teachers.

The House welcomed a new member today. Having won a special election Tuesday, Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, took his seat in the House today, replacing former Speaker Ray Sansom who resigned in disgrace after a number of scandals emerged. His father, Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, and a number of senators were on hand to watch the newest member of the Legislature join the House.

When his name emerged as a possible independent candidate for governor, Department of Children and Families Secretary George Sheldon said that he would wait until the end of the legislative session before he commented on any possible campaign. So far, he has been true to his word. When asked about his plans today after a media event for the governors Task Force on Autism, Sheldon said he was focused on his department, namely trying to keep DCF intact. Thats where the fight is, he said.