Floridians overwhelmingly back the current Seminole gaming "compact" and support what they know of a bigger gambling deal Gov. Rick Scott has asked lawmakers to approve, according to a Florida Chamber of Commerce poll released Thursday.

Scott and the Seminole Tribe of Florida reached agreement last month on a compact that would allow tribal casinos to add craps and roulette in exchange for a guarantee of $3 billion to the state over seven years. That came after lawmakers in 2010 approved another gambling compact, part of which expired last year.

On Thursday, U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Fla., the ranking Democrat on the U.S. House Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, unveiled a bill allowing Congress to impose sanctions on Iran if it backs terrorism acts.

Democrats their allies put U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo, R-Fla., on notice: they will go after him for voting to repeal President Barack Obama’s health-care law in November. 

Two Florida Republican activists are showcased in the latest round of TV ads as the Republican National Committee (RNC) looks to build up its team for 2016. 

The RNC is set to run ads highlighting the Republican Leadership Initiative (RLI) which will run on Fox Business during next week’s debate between the Republican presidential candidates. The ads include looks at two women from Florida: Vallerie, a community leader from Sarasota, and Katherine, the mother of an autistic child based in Tampa. 

The Florida Chamber of Commerce, which supports keeping the gaming compact with the Seminoles but opposes the expansion of gaming including destination casinos, released a poll on Thursday showing Floridians back the compact. 

Already under fire from the left, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., is now drawing heat from one of the largest liberal groups in the nation which wants her out as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. 

The U.S. House passed a measure repealing much of President Barack Obama’s federal health-care law and defunding Planned Parenthood on Wednesday. Obama is expected to veto the bill. 

An election-year budget that includes huge tax cuts, record funding for public schools and a new initiative to bring jobs to Florida might be good politics for lawmakers. The question is whether they can afford it.

When lawmakers start the 2016 legislative session Tuesday, it will have been years since the House and Senate were in the depths of the fallout from the global financial meltdown that forced painful cuts to schools and politically perilous increases in tobacco taxes and motor-vehicle fees.

The State Board of Education voted in favor of Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart’s recommendations for the Florida Standards Assessment cut scores in Tallahassee Wednesday. 

Political aide and Navy veteran Brandon Patty launched a bid to replace U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., who is currently running for the U.S. Senate.