The Club for Growth, a PAC supporting free-market solutions in the economy, took sides in the potential Democratic primary to replace U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., in 2016, launching a new TV ad on Tuesday.

The new ad praises U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., for opposing the Export-Import Bank, while hitting Murphy for supporting it. The new TV spot starts on MSNBC on Wednesday. Murphy launched a bid for the Senate back in March while Grayson has left the door open to entering the contest. 

While Florida lawmakers gear up for a special session beginning next week in Tallahassee, a co-star in the cast of next week's extravaganza is putting forward what he dubs a "compromise" on the issue dividing the House and Senate: Medicaid expansion. 

Politicians live in a day and age where it’s easier than ever to write up a quick message to say hello to constituents or give their opinion on breaking news or hot issues. Social media can be elected officials’ greatest companion -- it was pivotal in reaching out to young voters for Barack Obama’s first presidential campaign and has since been a tool to easily create name recognition nationwide.

But on the flip side, the ease of composing a tweet or a Facebook post can sometimes put politicians in a precarious position.

Florida Congresswoman Gwen Graham's "Apalachicola Bay Restoration Act" has attracted the support of more than 20 other members of the Florida delegation, all of whom are co-sponsoring the bill to save the oyster industry in North Florida.

On Tuesday, Democrat Graham unveiled the legislation, which mandates the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers “consider fresh water flow to the Apalachicola Bay in their water management plans.”

Florida and Republican-leaning states are booming, while traditionally Democratic states are getting left behind -- all because of  their economic policies.

Heritage Foundation economists Stephen Moore, Arthur B. Laffer and Joel Griffith teamed up on a study, “Why Red States Are Getting Richer and Blue States Poorer," looking at how the economy is managed in various states, including Florida.

Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., scored a win at the end of last week as the Senate passed their Girls Count Act. The bill, which passed with unanimous consent, would carve out funds from current foreign aid programs to create birth registries in underdeveloped countries.

Noting that 51 million children across the globe are not registered at birth, with most of them being girls, the senators teamed up to introduce the bill back in July. The senators brought the bill back earlier this year.

Teaming up with conservatives, libertarians and liberals, at the end of last week U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho, R-Fla., continued his fight to ensure authority over armed drones remains solely with the Department of Defense (DOD), as he brought back the Drone Reform Act (DRA) on Friday.

Yoho introduced the DRA last year to ensure the DOD and not the CIA had power over drones, though the bill went nowhere. On Friday, Yoho brought the bill back and made his case why the DOD should be the only branch of the federal government able to launch drones.

Welcome to The Dean's List -- an Ed Dean-style look at who Florida's political achievers were (and weren't) in the last seven days. What you see here is strictly my opinion, not necessarily the editor's or the rest of the staff at Sunshine State News.

THOSE WHO MADE THE LIST

On Monday at an event in Seminole, U.S. Rep. David Jolly, R-Fla., a possible U.S. Senate candidate in 2016, showcased his proposal to help veterans with their housing needs who are pursing higher education opportunities.

Jollys Student Veterans Housing Support Act," which he introduced last week and which is now in the Veterans Affairs Committee, reforms monthly housing stipends for veterans in school, including extending them to cover summer periods, moving the date up for distribution for full-time students and covering the increasing number of veterans taking online classes.

... Or any other Republican-lites the Florida Democratic Party tries to shove down our throats.