Floridians bid goodnight to Irene and goodbye to Ed this week as they dodged a major hurricane but watched as lightning struck the state's prisons chief, who fell out of favor with his boss.

Department of Corrections Secretary Ed Buss resigned his post midweek following a series of disagreements with the governor's office over prison privatization, health care and reality TV. The Indiana transplant, who went from Wunderkind to red-headed stepchild in his roughly seven months in office, was replaced by a 34-year veteran from FDLE with deep Tallahassee roots.

While Buss was getting a pink slip, the state's water management districts announced they had trimmed their budgets by more than $700 million in response to legislative directives and tough budget times. Public radio stations could sympathize as they were informed that they would receive no state help.

On the political front, the Republican race for U.S. Senate remains dominated by undecided voters as a large field of candidates vie for public attention in what appears to be an uphill battle to defeat a popular Democratic incumbent.

Meanwhile, GOP presidential candidates eyed the swing state for their respective bids to unseat a not-so-popular Democratic incumbent, with Mitt Romney leading the pack and newcomer (and Scott bff) Texas Gov. Rick Perry gaining his most prominent endorsement.

THE WHEELS ON THE BUSS COME OFF:

Hailed as a national leader in prison reform, Buss in December became one of the earliest and highest profile appointments for the incoming governor.

But following legislative moves to privatize a third of Florida's prison beds, Buss said the experiment should not extend further until cost savings were achieved -- a cautious stance that may have contrasted with Scott and the Legislature's hard-charging approach. The plan also cost $25 million more than expected, a revelation that fuelled the fires of privatization critics.

Also, the agency this week terminated a $180,000 contract with a woman brought to the agency by Buss to oversee the planned privatization of prisoner health care. Scott's office reportedly pushed for the woman, Elizabeth Gondles, to be fired over concerns about a conflict of interest. Her husband is the director of the only organization in the nation that accredits state prison medical services.

The final straw may have been more to do with process than substance in a flap over a decision to allow the MSNBC series "Lock-up" to film at the Santa Rosa Correctional Institution in Milton. Scott said he hadn't vetted the contract and canceled it – though some at DOC told a newspaper that his office had been clued in. Then, in a strange twist, after Buss quit on Thursday, Scott re-approved the contract anyway.

In a statement, Scott's office said of Buss's resignation that "differences in philosophy and management styles arose which made the separation in the best interests of the state."  Despite a resignation letter, Buss purchased a $310,000 home in Tallahassee in May, so the split probably wasn’t his idea.

BUDGET CONTINUES TO DRIVE POLICY: