On Monday, Florida Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater named Michelle Dahnke as deputy CFO of the Florida Department of Financial Services. Dahnke will focus on communications.

Michelle brings our department more than a decade of strategic communications and policy experience on a variety of issues important to the well-being of Florida families, Atwater said. Im confident her expertise will advance our efforts to make our government more transparent and our entire state more consumer- and business-friendly.

With Islamic State (IS) terrorists releasing a video of the beheading of American aid worker Peter Kassig, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, called for a congressional vote for military action.

The beheading of another American over the weekend further illustrates the savagery of IS, Nelson said on Monday. It shows why the United States and our allies must leave no stone unturned in going after these barbarians. I hope Congress is moved to vote on legislation formally authorizing military action.

U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., called on President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate to pass the Keystone XL Pipeline. Rooney insisted Keystone XL was a major issue in the elections earlier this month which saw the GOP flip the Senate.

Building the Keystone pipeline was absolutely on the ballot last week, and the American people sent a clear message its time to build, Rooney said on Friday. Will President Obama and Harry Reid continue to ignore the American people, or will they finally say yes to jobs and energy?