Supporters of expanded gambling and casino operations in Florida can expect a fight in 2012.

That was the message from leaders of faith-based and anti-casino groups who held a media event in Tallahassee on Tuesday to announce their opposition to a bill backed by Sen. Ellyn Bogdnoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, and Rep. Erik Fresen, R-Miami, that would open the door to large casinos being set up in the Sunshine State.

With U.S. Rep. Connie Mack preparing to enter the Republican primary field looking to challenge Democrat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, fellow Senate hopefuls unleashed attacks on the newcomer to the race.

The team behind former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner, who is running in the Republican primary, used Halloween to attack Nelson, Mack and former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, who is also running in the Republican primary.

U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, the Florida Republican who chairs the Veterans Affairs Committee in the U.S. House, took aim at President Barack Obama on Monday, attacking the presidents handling of the economy.

Citing the We Cant Wait mantra coming from the White House, Miller insisted that the Obama administration is trying to ignore Republicans controlling one chamber of Congress by using executive powers.

Florida Democrats over the weekend took aim at the Republican Party, arguing that the GOP -- which has dominated elections in the Sunshine State in recent years -- drew from the political fringe.

At the state party convention in Orlando, Democrat Bill Nelson, the senior U.S. senator from the Sunshine State, said Saturday he agreed with remarks Vice President Joe Biden made about the state of the Republican Party.

With the team behind President Barack Obama targeting the Sunshine State in their bid for a second term in 2012, the White House sent U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis to speak to the Florida Democratic Convention on Saturday.

A day after Vice President Joe Biden told the convention at Walt Disney World that Obama needed to carry Florida to win in 2012, Solis attempted to rally Democrats for the elections and urged them to push for the Obama jobs plan which, with Republicans controlling the U.S. House, has no chance of passing Congress.

Disneys Contemporary Resort in Walt Disney World opened in 1971 -- making it a fitting place for the Florida Democratic Party to meet this past weekend.

With President Barack Obama almost certainly needing to carry Florida in 2012 to stay in the White House, Vice President Joe Biden tried to rally Democrats in a speech Friday night at Walt Disney World, insisting that the presidential election came down to the Sunshine State.

Speaking at the 2011 Florida Democratic convention, Biden emphasized how high the stakes are in Florida. Biden was introduced by Democrat U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson who is running for a third term in 2012.