After 10 Glorious Years, Sunshine State News and I Are Passing the Baton

After pulling defeat out of the jaws of victory in the Jacksonville mayoral race earlier in the year, Mike Hogan, who was the Republican candidate in the contest, was named by Gov. Rick Scott to the Public Employees Relations Commission. Hogan, a former state representative who served as Duval County tax collector before losing the mayoral race, takes the place of Stephanie Williams Ray as chairman of the commission and will serve until Jan. 1, 2012. Hogan lost to Alvin Brown -- the first Democrat to win a mayoral election in Jacksonville since Ed Austin won in 1991.

From his perch as chairman of the U.S. House Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, Florida Republican Connie Mack proposed a solution to help lower gas prices in America -- bring oil in from Canada. The Florida Republican also said that this wouldincrease the nation's security. Mack called for President Barack Obama to quickly approve the Keystone XL pipeline which would send oil from Canadian fields in the United States.

The Republican National Committee is unveiling a new ad Wednesday in key states. The fourth "Change Direction" ad is a 30-second clip that depicts a dire economic situation in January 2017, the end of President Barack Obama's "second term." It will air in Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, Indiana, Ohio and Iowa -- all states Obama won in 2008 which the RNC believes are vulnerable in 2012.

Nick Loeb has his running mate. Sofia Vergara, the "Modern Family" actress, says she's all in for helping her boyfriend vie for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in Florida. "Of course I will help him, why not?" she told "People" magazine. "I support him with everything. If that's what he wants to do in his life, I will be there for him."