Count former Gov. Mike Dukakis, D-Mass., as underwhelmed by former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla., but insisted he was fundamentally conservative. Dukakis, who lost to Bushs father in the 1988 presidential race, talked to U.S. News and World Report on the 2014 elections and the 2016 presidential contest:

Q: Who do you think on the Republican side is a legitimate messenger?

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam endorsed former Rep. Travis Hutson over former Rep. Doc Renuart in the Jan. 27 Republican primary in the special election for the Florida Senate seat vacated by former Sen. John Thrasher.

Travis Hutson is a committed conservative who is devoted to helping Northeast Florida thrive, said Putnam on Tuesday. I know he will work tirelessly to grow the Northeast Florida jobs base and improve the economy and education system. Travis Hutson is a true leader, and I am proud to support him.

With four rabbis killed by Palestinian terrorists in Jerusalem this week, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., called for freezing federal aid to the Palestinian Authority.

This act of cold-blooded violence is an abomination, said Buchanan. Releasing millions of hard-earned taxpayer dollars to the Palestinian Authority is outrageous. How can we justify this? We need to send an undeniable message to the world that actions do indeed have consequences.

Buchanan is the only member of the Florida delegation on the Ways and Means Committee.

Noting that newly elected Gwen Graham, the Democrat who beat U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Fla., earlier this month, said she would not vote for U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to lead her partys caucus, conservative group Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF) took her to task.

On Tuesday, the CLF pointed to reports showing Pelosi had been elected to lead Democrats without any opposition.

U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., unveiled a bill to repeal the individual mandate included in President Barack Obama's federal health-care law. Jolly is calling his proposal the? ?Patient Freedom Act of? ?2014.

Teacher David Cox took 37.5 percent as the Democrat challenger against U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., who won with 62.5 percent. But on Monday, less than two weeks after the final votes were counted, Cox filed to run for the Florida Senate seat opened after Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, resigned to take the helm at Florida State University.

Cox becomes the first Democrat to run for the seat. Already two Republicans in the Florida House -- Travis Hutson of Palm Coast and Doc Renuart of Ponte Vedra Beach -- have filed.

Reports emerged on Monday that Nicolas Maduro said his regime in Venezuela is running a large spy operation in the U.S. and two Florida Republicans who have been sharp critics -- U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen -- are targets.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., a member of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee, took aim at the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) after news emerged on Monday that it had kidnapped a Colombian general. Rubio said he supported the Colombian government ending peaces talks with FARC.

On Monday, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater named Michelle Dahnke as deputy CFO of the Florida Department of Financial Services. Dahnke will focus on communications.

Michelle brings our department more than a decade of strategic communications and policy experience on a variety of issues important to the well-being of Florida families, Atwater said. Im confident her expertise will advance our efforts to make our government more transparent and our entire state more consumer- and business-friendly.

With Islamic State (IS) terrorists releasing a video of the beheading of American aid worker Peter Kassig, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, called for a congressional vote for military action.

The beheading of another American over the weekend further illustrates the savagery of IS, Nelson said on Monday. It shows why the United States and our allies must leave no stone unturned in going after these barbarians. I hope Congress is moved to vote on legislation formally authorizing military action.