Democrats in high dudgeon over Bush administration "secrets" and Gov. Rick Scott's missing e-mails got a dose of their own medicine when a federal judge ruled that visitor records at the Obama White House are subject to public disclosure.

The Secret Service, which maintains the visitor logs, argued that the records are exempt from Freedom of Information Act requests. But U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell sided with the watchdog group Judicial Watch, which had sued for records from the first eight months of Obama's presidency.

Will Hurricane Irene be the second coming of Hurricane Floyd? FEMA chief Craig Fugate said Tuesday that the projected path and strength of Irene resembles Floyd's track in 1999, when that storm blasted the Bahamas, raked the Eastern seaboard and triggered the third largest evacuation in U.S. history.

The latest computer models show Irene swelling to a Category 3 storm over the Bahamas beginning Wednesday and then turning northward -- presumably away from Florida.

Leaving a thrashed Puerto Rico and heading north, Hurricane Irene was powering up Tuesday morning.

A national boomlet keeps building for Marco Rubio, with no encouragement from the Florida senator.

While the Republican presidential contest remains wide open, a consensus is forming for the junior senator as the party's vice presidential candidate, according to an oft-quoted political scientist.
Sabato said Republicans are mindful that their party must at least remain competitive for Hispanic votes if they hope to knock off President Obama.

A sampling of the cost for drug-testing welfare recipients in Central Florida shows the program is a loss leader for the state.