House Speaker Larry Cretul, R-Ocala, sent a letter back to Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, saying he was open to Atwaters call for a second special session to tackle the economic impact of the oil spill. Cretul also took a shot at Gov. Charlie Crists call for the Legislature to pass a proposed constitutional amendment to voters which would ban oil drilling in state waters.

Rep. Sandy Adams, R-Oviedo, announced on Thursday that she will file a motion in the special session next week to censure Gov. Charlie Crist for calling the session.

Our nation faces the effects of out-of-control federal spending and we must not allow the wasteful and unnecessary use of taxpayer dollars to permeate Florida, said Adams. Governor Crist is wasting hundreds of thousands of taxpayers' dollars on an unnecessary special session of the state Legislature, and he should be held accountable for this misuse.

Federal campaign finance reports revealed on Thursday that Jeff Greene, a billionaire investor running in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate nomination, spent almost $6 million of his own fortune in the race. The campaign staff of his chief rival for the nomination, U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, is using the occasion to attack Greene.

Sen. John Thrasher of Jacksonville, the chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, won the endorsement of JaxBiz, a political organization backed by the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Leaders like John Thrasher are what make Northeast Florida a great place to live, work and play, and we look forward to continuing to work with Senator Thrasher in the Senate, said JaxBiz Chairman Michael Hightower.

With the Legislature going into special session next week to consider backing a constitutional amendment to ban oil drilling in state waters, Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, is now ready for a second one to be held at the end of summer.

Holly Benson, who is running in the Republican primary for the attorney general nomination, offered strong words of support for Attorney General Bill McCollum for joining Arizona to defend that states new immigration laws from a lawsuit backed by the Obama White House.

On Thursday, labor leaders called on Gov. Charlie Crist and the leadership of both houses to expand the focus of the special session to change state statues so unemployed Floridians will be able to receive extended unemployment benefits.

Staff from former House Speaker Marco Rubio, the favorite to win the Republican nomination in the U.S. Senate race, went after Gov. Charlie Crist, who is running in the race as an independent, for calling a special session of the Legislature next week.

Money keeps flowing into the race to take the congressional seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart. Rep. David Rivera, R-Miami, announced on Thursday that his campaign raised more than $500,000 in the second quarter.

Locked in a tight battle with Sen. Dave Aronberg of Greenacres for the Democratic attorney general nomination, Sen. Dan Gelber of Miami Beach received some important support on Thursday morning when the Broward Teachers Union and the United Teachers of Dade announced they were backing his campaign.