Backers of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas held a money-bomb over the weekend and pulled in more than $1.8 million for his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.

Our campaign is truly surging, and this is just more evidence of the strength of our grassroots support, said Jesse Benton, a spokesman for the Paul campaign.

Weve just come off of an impressive finish in the Iowa straw poll, and our rising poll numbers and strong fundraising proves our message is resonating with people.

While there had been speculation that former Florida House Speaker Allan Bense would seek the Republican nomination to take on Democratic U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, the former state legislative leader endorsed a candidate already in the field -- former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner. Hasner announced on Tuesday that Bense would serve as chairman of his campaign.

In his statement backing Hasner, Bense took a shot at former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux who is also seeking the Republican nomination.

Former Gov. George Pataki of New York is heading out to Iowa this weekend, generating buzz that he will enter the already crowded field of candidates battling it out for the Republican presidential nomination.

Pataki will be appearing at an event in Des Moines on Saturday backed by the Polk County Republicans. The former New York governor will be joined by two congressmen already running for the Republican presidential nomination -- Ron Paul of Iowa and Thad McCotter of Michigan.

Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman garnered some attention over this past weekend for taking some shots at his rivals for the Republican presidential nomination. The Huntsman camp looked to remind voters on Tuesday in a new video that their candidate also bashed his former boss, President Barack Obama. Huntsman, who had experience with Asia in George H.W. Bushs administration, served as ambassador to China under Obama until earlier this year.

U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin announced on Monday that he would not enter the race for the Republican presidential nomination. While humbled by all of the encouragement, I will not be seeking my party's nomination, noted Ryan, the House Budget Committee chairman who won some national fame for leading congressional Republicans on the budget against President Barack Obama. Ryan had received backing from many prominent Republicans and conservatives to enter the contest.

After "leaving the door open a crack" last week to the possibility of a run for U.S. Senate, U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Plantation, shut it Monday, according to Politico.

Here's West's statement:

"I will not seek the Republican nomination for the United States Senate in 2012. With regard to my future, the only goal I have is to do my very best to represent the constituents of the congressional district and to restore the exceptionalism of our nation," he said.

A poll released by Gallup on Monday found former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts beating President Barack Obama among registered voters 48 percent to 46 percent. Obama was tied with Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, who announced earlier in the month that he was running, with both candidates taking 47 percent.

According to numerous reports, Hurricane Irene is poised to hit South Florida by as early as Thursday morning. The storm is only a Category 1 right now, with winds of 80 mph, but some projections have it gathering strength and rising to a Category 3 storm with 115 mph winds before striking U.S. soil.

A poll released on Monday, unveiled by the Associated Industries of Florida (AIF) and taken by McLaughlin & Associates, finds Gov. Rick Scott on the rebound with voters in the Sunshine State.

Scott remains upside down in the poll with 37 percent of those surveyed having a favorable opinion of him while 47 percent see him as unfavorable. But those numbers narrow when it comes to Scotts job performance, where it is almost split even -- while 45 percent approve of Scotts record as governor, 46 percent disapprove.