Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich continues to enjoy a healthy lead over the rest of the field for the Republican presidential nomination in Florida according to a NBC/Marist poll released over the weekend. Gingrich takes 44 percent of likely Republican primary voters in the Sunshine State while former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts places second with 29 percent.

Next week, Republicans in the Senate will be in for an interesting leadership fight as two senators elected for the first time in 2010 -- Roy Blunt of Missouri and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin -- duke it out to see who becomes vice chairman of the Senate Republican Conference. The contest certainly has ideological ramifications -- Johnson is a favorite of the tea party movement while Blunt, a veteran of the U.S. House, is considered more a favorite of the establishment.

With reports continuing this week that U.S. Air Force personnel discarded the partial remains of at least 274 American service members in a landfill, Florida Republican U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan demanded a full investigation.

Reports have found that personnel at the Charles C. Carson Center for Mortuary Affairs at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware -- the initial stop on American soil for the remains of service members killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq -- have dumped the cremated remains in a Virginia landfill.

On Friday, Republican presidential hopeful former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania gained a big boost for his campaign when he received the endorsement of Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz. Santorum has campaigned hard in the Hawkeye State, which holds its caucus on Jan. 3, and has appeared in all 99 counties in the state. Schultz becomes the first statewide elected official to back any of the GOP hopefuls.

Having won the Iowa Republican straw poll in Ames back in August, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota has a lot riding on the Hawkeye State. A poor showing there will essentially doom her longshot bid at the Republican presidential nomination.

Having a campaign organization in place has always been key to doing well in Iowa and Bachmann appears to have a solid one in place. On Friday, the congresswoman announced that her team had county chairs in 91 of the 99 counties in Iowa and had precinct leaders in every county.

Florida Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio has drawn fire from the right. Over at the American Conservative, conservative columnist and former presidential candidate Pat Buchanan blasts Rubio for pushing a measure to allow Georgia into NATO. Buchanan also praises the senator who stopped Rubios push -- fellow freshman Republican U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry takes off the gloves to rip into President Barack Obama and two of his opponents -- former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney -- in a new television commercial.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam came out against expanded resort gaming in the Sunshine State on Thursday.

What makes Florida special is our world-class natural resources and our international, family-friendly attractions. These resources are what is at stake in this debate about the expansion of gambling in Florida, Putnam said in a statement. Allowing Vegas-style casinos to come to Florida would hinder the states future economic development, would threaten the safety and security of our communities and would not benefit Floridas families.

Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, now in a crowded Republican primary to take on Democrat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, took aim at the incumbents support of opening a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Detention Center in Southwest Ranches.

LeMieuxs team noted that Nelson supported the detention center in April -- and has not changed his mind despite local residents opposing it.

Attorney and conservative activist Will McBride, who took 30 percent of the Republican primary vote when he challenged Katherine Harris for the GOP nod for the Senate nomination in 2006, announced on Thursday that he is backing former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner in the crowded primary to take on Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012.