In a letter late Tuesday, Northwest Florida legislators asked Gov. Rick Scott to immediately declare water-ravaged Escambia and Santa Rosa counties natural disaster areas.

"As you are aware, Escambia and Santa Rosa counties were hit over the weekend with large amounts of rain causing widespread flooding and forcing hundreds of residents to evacuate their homes," the letter read.

Is anybody surprised that Democratic voters are more than twice as likely as Republicans to back New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's nanny plan to ban super-sized sugary drinks in the Big Apple? This, according to a new poll for The Hill.

Who won and who lost in the Scott Walker recall has a special flavor coming from Kevin Binversie, one of Wisconsin's most respected conservative political bloggers.

Here in a nutshell, from his piece on WisconsinReporter.com, is Binversie's take on Tuesday's historic recall election in the Badger State:

Winners

Gov. Scott Walker. All but certain to win re-election in 2014.

It may be true that the Sunshine State leads the nation in corruption, and that federal officials made 781 corruption convictions involving Florida between 2000 and 2010, but one former state ethics commissioner is convinced that nothing is going to be done about it.

In the end, Tuesday's Scott Walker recall election wasn't even close. The gritty Republican governor of Wisconsin pulled in 54 percent of the vote to Democrat Tom Barrett's 45 percent.

The result, closely watched by the White House, devastated Democrats and labor unions. Out-of-state conservative and liberal groups alike had poured money into the race, and several big-name politicians -- including Bill Clinton -- stumped in Wisconsin.

The one heavy hitter conspicuously absent was Barack Obama.

Melissa Meeker, executive director of the South Florida Water Management District, unveiled on Monday a draft settlement to a 24-year-old environmental lawsuit. The suit has dragged on for 24 years and cost taxpayers millions of dollars in useless attempts to restore the Everglades.

NewsMax.com's BuzzFeed is reporting a prediction from a fairly credible source that Hillary Clinton will run for president again in 2016.

Former DNC Chair Ed Rendell acknowledges in his new book, "A Nation of Wusses," that Clinton claims she's "bone-tired" and insists she has no interest in running. But, says Rendell, "the job of secretary of state is far more grueling than that of the president, with the nonstop traveling, the constant jet lag, and the odd-hours phone calls to accommodate foreign officials' schedules.

If the Badger State goes red, the Dems are dead.

That's the chantable little slogan you'll hear around Washington about how both sides are looking at the recall election of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, his lieutenant governor and four Republican state senators.

Trouble is, Dems on the national level aren't pouring enough money into the race between Walker and Democratic Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. And they've slipped as many as 7 points behind Walker in the polls.

The president of a Florida higher education faculty union is busy in Wisconsin as we speak, helping the Democrats and other national advocacy groups for education drum Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker out of office in a June recall election.

"What is happening in that state is of national significance," says United Faculty of Florida president Tom Auxter, a professor of philosophy at the University of Florida. The recall election, he says, will help determine what politicians "can get away with" in dealing with faculty unions.