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The son of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and grandson of former President George H.W. Bush may run for land commissioner.

He leads one prominent possible opponent 64 percent to 21 percent and another by a 65-19 margin.

Liberal economist Paul Krugman is pushing back against a petition for him to be nominated as Treasury secretary, saying the notion "really is a bad idea."

Actor Danny Glover and the liberal activist website MoveOn.Org are circulating a petition asking President Obama to nominate Krugman as Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's replacement.

Krugman says while he's "flattered" by the petition, he thinks he has more influence as an op-ed columnist for The New York Times — and describes himself as the "World's Worst Administrator" in a blog post responding to the petition.

"It would mean taking me out of a quasi-official job that I believe I'm good at and putting me into one I'd be bad at," Krugman writes, after saying "there's not a chance that I would be confirmed."

Read more...

Actor Danny Glover is leading the charge on a petition from the liberal MoveOn.org for liberal economist Paul Krugman to replace Tim Geithner as Treasury secretary.

"We urge you to nominate Paul Krugman for Treasury secretary," the petition reads. "Krugman will protect Social Security and Medicare from benefit cuts, promote policies to create jobs and help defeat the austerity dogma in Washington and around the world."

Krugman, a Nobel Prize winner in economics, is a popular columnist for The New York Times. He has at times criticized both Obama and Geithner from the left, and recently wrote that he found Geithner's impending resignation from Obama's Cabinet to be "reassuring."

Glover, an actor and liberal activist, sent the petition to MoveOn.org members on Sunday; as of Monday morning, it had been signed by 184,000 members, with a revised goal of 200,000 backers from the group.

White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew is seen by most as the front-runner to replace Geithner.

Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady is giving his "full support" to a push in the state to legalize gay marriage, a notable step that could give the bill an extra boost in the statehouse — and possibly help Republicans in the Democratic-leaning state.

"More and more Americans understand that if two people want to make a lifelong commitment to each other, government should not stand in their way," Brady told the Chicago Sun-Times. "Giving gay and lesbian couples the freedom to get married honors the best conservative principles. It strengthens families and reinforces a key Republican value — that the law should treat all citizens equally."

A bill to legalize gay marriage in the state stalled briefly on Wednesday but is likely to win approval in the coming days.

Illinois's Republican Party has had much more success running social centrists like Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), who returns to Congress on Thursday for the first time since his stroke, and who won on the same day a more conservative Republican lost the governor's race in 2010. Brady's unusual move could help bolster the party in socially liberal, fiscally centrist swing areas of the state, especially the Chicago suburbs.

Frank Luntz said the National Rifle Association's call for armed guards in schools is out of step with public opinion.

A majority of Americans support new firearm restrictions including a ban on assault weapons the wake of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary, according to a new poll conducted for CNN. Read more...

Rep. Steve Pearce (R-N.M.) noted a sense of emptiness in the offices on Capitol Hill Wednesday, due to the reshuffling  of members.

“Empty offices are everywhere on Capitol Hill…” Pearce tweeted on Wednesday.

TOP STORY: Hawaii Dems move quickly to fill Inouye seat

The Hawaiian Democratic Party is moving quickly to develop a shortlist of successors for Sen. Daniel Inouye’s (D-Hawaii) seat, following the senator’s death on Monday.

Hawaii Democratic Party Chairman Dante Carpenter said he had already been contacted by a number of Democrats interested in the seat, and that party officials had begun the process of collecting applications in the state’s counties.

"With all due respect to the senator passing only yesterday, we have begun the process," he told The Hill on Tuesday.

Democrats must submit three possible Democratic appointees for the seat to Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D), who will choose a replacement to serve until a special election is held in 2014.

"We don't want to lose a minute of seniority," Carpenter said.

TOP STORY: Inouye's death leaves opening in Senate.

Sen. Daniel Inouye’s (D-Hawaii) death on Monday shocked colleagues and left an opening in the upper chamber.

Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) must make a temporary appointment to fill his seat, until a special election is held for a candidate to fill out the rest of Inouye's term.

The most senior and second-longest-serving senator, Inouye died of respiratory complications.

Hawaii election law says his seat must be filled by an interim appointment from the governor. Abercrombie will have to choose from a list of three potential appointees submitted by the Hawaii Democratic Party.

Whomever he appoints will serve until a special election in 2014, when Hawaii voters will choose a senator to serve the remainder of Inouye's term, until 2016.