Recession and foreclosure doom and gloom is doing little to dampen sales of existing Florida homes and condos, which continue to be priced a levels homebuyers are finding affordable. A federal tax credit that ends soon also has helped drive sales.

Watch the video of Charlie Crist evading a reporter's question after a bill signing Thursday.
At a campaign stop in Jacksonville earlier this month, Crist said, "Who's running the asylum?" referring to legislators.
The reporter tried to get Crist's mindset when he made the comment, but it appears Crist wasn't interested in giving an answer.

On the day when the Capitol celebrated its version of Puerto Rico Day, Gov. Charlie Crist met with two Democratic state representatives from Orlando and members of the Puerto Rican community on Thursday afternoon.

Crist was in listening mode as Soto talked about foreclosure issues and Thompson talked about cultural tourism. Tourisms still the engine that drives Floridas economy, said Thompson.

While a 4-H meeting is not exactly ground zero for political junkies, members of that organization could not escape politics when they rallied at the Capitol.

As hundreds of teenagers in the 4-H assembled in Tallahassee to celebrate Earth Day and kicking off a second century of being in Florida, speakers from the Florida Forever Coalition spoke in favor of that program and said they hope the Legislature will continue to fund it. Leaders of the 4-H praised the Legislature for keeping money in the state budget to keep funding the organization and its efforts.

As the Capitol celebrates its day to honor Puerto Rico, Rep. Darren Soto, D-Orlando, has been on center stage, celebrating his heritage and the many links between the island and the Sunshine State.

Puerto Rico has deep roots in the state, said Soto, pointing out that Ponce de Leon, the Spanish explorer who discovered Florida, was also the first governor of Puerto Rico.

Florida Republicans continued to push back against new federal health-care laws as the House voted to send a constitutional amendment to the electorate in November that would allow Floridians to opt out of mandatory health insurance.

The House passed the measure 74-42 on a vote that closely mirrored party lines, with Democrats Leonard Bembry of Greenville, and Debbie Boyd of Newberry joining Republicans in backing it.

One more prominent conservative Republican has endorsed Marco Rubios Senate campaign. This morning former VP Dick Cheney announced he was backing Rubio over Gov. Charlie Crist. Cheney blasted Crist, saying Floridians cannot trust him to stand up to President Barack Obama, or even to remain a member of the Republican Party.

Sen. Joe Negron's unpopular attempt to have voters decide regularly whether to close or continue a Children's Services Council with independent taxing authority has been revised. It is moving toward a vote in the Senate as an amendment to another bill. The changed proposal was added to SB 2014, which was rolled over to third reading Wednesday afternoon.

Rep. Adam Hasner, R-Delray Beach, is sponsoring a measure on the House floor calling for a new convention to amend the U.S. Constitution to balance the budget. It's very unlikely to happen but, just in case it does, let's hope that Florida produces better representatives than it did the last time the state took part in a national constitutional convention.

In what is at least the third sign of a farewell this week for Altamonte Springs Republican Lee Constantine, Senate President Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, ceded his podium to the long-time lawmaker. Constantine has served in the Legislature for roughly 18 years. He started in the House in 1992 before moving on to the Senate in 2000.