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The band of people trying to revive the all-but-dead Minneapolis Republican Party have no illusions. Not about their political clout, nor about their candidates ability to actually win elections.

But lowered expectations also mean there are opportunities for small victories for the 34 delegates who attended the city Republican Partys endorsing convention earlier this week at the Eagles Lodge in the Seward neighborhood. Over the calls of a Bingo announcer in the bar next door, delegates spent two hours organizing, talking strategy, and considering which candidates the party will endorse for what are nominally non-partisan municipal offices.

Its kind of hard in Minneapolis to be a Republican because they have managed somehow to totally demoralize us, said city party chair Christina Pierson. Im a fighter and very rarely demoralized. But some folks are afraid to show up and even let their neighbors know theyre Republican.

In what may be the most-liberal and Democratic city between Chicago and Seattle, to be a Republican is to be vastly outnumbered, and always outgunned. Though Donald Trump received nearly 26,000 votes from Minneapolis voters last November, Hillary Clinton got 174,585.

So if their candidates cant win, why bother?

Party activists say they would rather win than lose, of course, and feeling politically impotent is what led to the dissolution of the city party after the 2013 elections. Our first objective is to elect a Republican mayor and a Republican city council good luck with that, quipped Alan Shilepsky, a former GOP candidate for state Legislature and secretary of state.

But Shilepsky thinks city Republicans can at least play a role in city elections. They can look at the candidates for mayor with an eye toward finding someone who is better than others from a GOP perspective. And in a close ranked-choice-vote election, those votes could make a difference. I sure know who in the general election for mayor will be my second choice, he said. And if we dont have a candidate, that person will be my first choice, because Id rather have them than Ray Dehn or Nekima Levy-Pounds or Jacob Frey.

Besides, offering tacit support to candidates running as DFLers could show other residents that the party is reasonable, he said. Were not saying we only accept Republicans for mayor and city council. We have second choices and we see a difference between some of these people, he said.

The problem, however, is that there are DFL campaign teams that would relish having one of their Democratic opponents being praised by Republicans. Shilepsky acknowledged that reality. I will say the one thing that worries me is the Kiss Of Death Factor, he said. Maybe in this city it could hurt some candidates. Its something we need to think about, maybe talk to some people, whether they welcome or totally disdain our encouragement or support.

Still, Pierson said her central committee will consider providing GOP voters with some suggestions to distinguish among the candidates for city offices. Party rules permit only one candidate to be endorsed by the party and to carry that label with them into the election, but Pierson said her committee will consider whether it should recommend second or third choices to members and on sample ballots.

The numbers of city Republicans willing to show themselves Tuesday, or perhaps willing to devote a summer evening to politics, was meager. A credentials report revealed that while the party had allocated 347 delegate slots to the citys 13 council wards based on the 2013 GOP vote for governor, only 34 delegates arrived to claim them. Wards 2, 4, 5 and 6 had no delegates present and the tables set aside for them sat empty.

Wards 1 and 10 had just one delegate report. That led to an odd situation when the convention moved to endorse council candidates. That sole Ward 10 delegate, Bruce Lundeen, was also a city council candidate seeking the GOP endorsement. Under the rules, only delegates from each ward could vote on endorsements. So, technically at least, Lundeen voted to endorse himself.

To give him company, convention chair Carlton Crawford allowed everyone to join in the voice vote. And one delegate joked that the minutes should at least record that Lundeen was endorsed unanimously. Lundeen has been a loyal GOP ballot filler over the last several elections, last serving as the party nominee for state Senate district 62 against incumbent DFL Sen. Jeff Hayden. Lundeen managed to capture 11.7 percent of the vote.

There were no delegates from Ward 6, for which Fadumo Yusef was seeking the party endorsement for her challenge of Minneapolis Council Member Abdi Warsame. The city central committee will consider endorsing her when it next meets, Pierson said. In the meantime, Pierson said she would appoint Yusef to the empty chair of the ward organization, making her a member of the central committee.

Wards 1, 2 and 5 remain without a representative on the committee, something Pierson said she hopes to remedy soon.

The party did give endorsements to six candidates. For at-large seats on the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board, it endorsed Jonathan Honerbrink and Rob Sullentrap. Honerbrink had until this week been running for mayor, but changed because he has more knowledge of the park system, he said.

For the district 6 park board seat, the party endorsed Jennifer Zielinski. And, in addition to Lundeen in Ward 10, the convention also endorsed Joseph Kovacs for city council in Ward 7.

And what took the citys DFLers 12 hours to not accomplish took Republicans just two. They did not select a party candidate for mayor of Minneapolis. While the Democrats failed to choose among seven hopefuls, the Republicans had just one. But rather than endorse that candidate Bob Again Carney the convention followed the recommendation of its nominations committee to reject him and go with no one instead.

Brian Bergs, the chairman of that committee, told delegates that after interviewing Carney, the four members found that he did not have a strong background to be mayor and was focused on a single issue: transportation and transportation funding.

And then there was the fact that Carney has written a book calling for the impeachment of President Trump. One delegate said he recalled speaking to him and that Carney noted that he hadnt voted for a Republican for president in 48 years.

Said Carney: I voted for Romney.

Having supported GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney in 2012 wasnt enough for delegates, though. The motion to not endorse for mayor was approved on a near-unanimous voice vote.

It wasnt always this way. Delegate John Bergford recalled that when he was GOP leader of the Minneapolis City Council, there were 10 Republicans and three Democrats.

That was during the 1960s. The current council is 12-1 but the one isnt a Republican. Its Green Party member Cam Gordon, who is to the left of several of the DFL members.

Pierson was apologetic for the stripped down arrangements and the paucity of delegates. Until a microphone was provided by the lodge, speakers struggled to compete with the Bingo caller. But she said the city party will try to become more organized and more conspicuous, showing up at city council meetings and attending truth in taxation hearings in the fall.

Were still putting the spokes on the wheel so we can get the wheel on the wagon, she said.

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Bingo, Bob, and kisses of death: checking in on the Minneapolis Republican Party's convention - MinnPost

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) warned that there would be bipartisan backlash against President Trump if he fires special counsel Robert Mueller, who is leading the probe into Russia meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign.

If he fired Bob Mueller, I think hed see a tremendous backlash response from both Democrats but also House Republicans, he said.

Trump has recently blasted Mueller for announcing that he is looking into Trumps business finances as part of the Russia probe, after the president said he thinks its a violation of the guidelines for the probe. Trump added that he would consider firing Mueller as special counsel.

McCaul said Republicans are frustrated with trying to pass legislation on healthcare and tax reform, and said he hopes Trump will stay on message with a shakeup in the White House press office.

White House press secretary Sean Spicer announced he would resign from his post Friday, after the press office appointed Anthony Scaramucci as the communication director.

It is frustrating, McCaul said. I hope with the new team with the new people around him perhaps he can get back on message.

We want a more disciplined White House on message so we can stay on message and get the things done what we need to get done.

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GOP lawmaker warns: Trump would face Republican backlash if he fires Mueller - The Hill

Associated Press

Saturday, July 22, 2017 | 1 a.m.

WASHINGTON Republicans aren't usually big on raising taxes, but they're really eager to eliminate the federal deduction for state and local taxes.

Why? A look at the states that benefit the most from the tax break helps explain it they are all Democratic strongholds. New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and California top the list of states where taxpayers get the biggest deductions. Not a single Republican-leaning state ranks in the top 10.

"Although Republicans usually recoil at any type of tax increase, cutting this tax break would almost be fun for them," said Martin Sullivan, chief economist for Tax Analysts. "It provides massively disproportionate deductions to high-tax states controlled by Democrats."

Proposals by House Republican leaders and President Donald Trump would repeal the tax break as part of their packages to overhaul the American tax code. But they are getting a lot of pushback from Republican lawmakers in Democratic-controlled states.

The standoff illustrates how hard it is for Congress to eliminate any popular tax break, even one that primarily benefits the ruling party's political opponents.

Almost 44 million claimed the deduction in 2014, according to IRS statistics. That's nearly every taxpayer who itemizes deductions, a little less than 30 percent of all taxpayers. Sullivan analyzed which states would be hit hardest by repealing the tax deduction. The Associated Press did a similar analysis and came to the same conclusion.

Nationally, the average deduction is about $11,800, but it is much bigger in many blue states. New York is tops with an average deduction of more than $21,000. Connecticut is next at $18,900, followed by New Jersey at $17,200 and California at $17,100.

These are states with high property values, high costs of living, high incomes and relatively high state and local taxes compared to other states. They are also states President Donald Trump lost in last year's election. Though the president is from New York, he lost the state to Democrat Hillary Clinton by 22 percentage points.

The highest-ranked state won by Trump is Wisconsin, which came in at No. 13, with an average deduction of $11,300.

At the bottom is Alaska, with an average deduction of $4,800. It is followed by Tennessee and Alabama. Among the bottom 10 states, Nevada and New Mexico are the only ones won by Clinton.

The deduction allows taxpayers to write off real estate taxes, and state and local income taxes. If your state doesn't have an income tax, you can deduct sales taxes. The deduction is heavily weighted to families with high incomes. Seventy-five percent of the benefits went to families making more than $100,000.

Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas, says eliminating a tax break that helps some people will help lawmakers lower tax rates for everyone.

"We're proposing a much simpler code with lower rates where everyone gets help whether they are paying their state and local taxes or they are putting their kids in college," said Brady, who chairs the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee.

Eliminating the tax break would raise $1.3 trillion over the next decade, according to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, money that could be used to help pay for lower income tax rates.

The House Republican plan would eliminate most itemized deductions while nearly doubling the standard deduction, to $24,000 for married couples. Notably, the plan would keep the deductions for mortgage interest and charitable contributions.

The White House and congressional Republicans have been privately negotiating their tax package for weeks, with no public sign that they're near a consensus. Democrats have been excluded from the talks.

Some Republicans claim the deduction for state and local taxes encourages states to spend and tax more because the taxes can be deducted at the federal level. Some also complain that the deduction forces low-tax Republican states to subsidize high taxes in Democratic states.

However, many blue-state Republicans don't buy those arguments. They note that most high-cost blue states send more tax dollars to Washington than they receive in federal benefits. And who benefits from those tax dollars? Low-cost red states where incomes are generally lower.

"If we're going to have a discussion about who is subsidizing whom, it must be across the board. It can't be just one provision," said Rep. Leonard Lance, R-N.J.

Lance is teaming up with Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr., D-N.J., in an effort to maintain the tax break.

"In New Jersey, (the deduction) encourages very strong public schools," Lance said. "I want to maintain strong public schools. For there to be strong public schools, there has to be adequate spending."

Rep. Tom MacArthur, R-N.J., said he brings up the deduction every time he sees Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, one of Trump's top advisers on taxes.

"The minute he walked into the room and saw me he pointed and said, 'I know, state and local tax deduction,'" MacArthur said.

"I know the White House is committed to bringing taxes down for everybody," MacArthur said. "But people in high-tax states under the plan they're proposing would basically be at a break-even while everyone else in the county enjoys tax relief. That's not fair."

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Republicans embrace tax hike targeting Democratic states - Las Vegas Sun

Republican lawmakers on Thursday were unsure of whether they would be able to find the votes to pass their 2018 budget plan anytime soon, even though the plan was easily approved in the House Budget Committee a day earlier.

The GOP needs a budget to pass tax reform this year, since the budget will set up privileged legislation on tax reform that couldn't be filibustered by Democrats in the Senate.

Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy did not schedule the fiscal year 2018 budget resolution "Building a Better America, for a vote next week, which is the final legislative session before a scheduled five-week recess.

McCarthy told the Washington Examiner GOP leaders are going to determine the level of Republican support for the measure, which is to serve as the legislative vehicle for tax reform, a top Republican agenda goal. Conservatives and moderates are at loggerheads over the size of domestic spending cuts, and lawmakers are also clamoring for information about the undisclosed tax plan that is to serve as the centerpiece of the legislation.

"We are working through it," McCarthy told the Washington Examiner.

Prospects for the measure were bolstered Wednesday night when the House Budget Committee passed it along party lines without any Republican defectors, even though some conservative critics sit on the panel.

Conservative Dave Brat, R-Va., was among the lawmakers who voted for the bill after criticizing it. Brat was seeking to double the $203 billion in domestic spending cuts called for in the $4 trillion plan and said he has not decided whether he will back the bill on the House floor.

"We should have done more to tackle mandatory spending levels in this budget," Brat said in a statement. "While I am not happy with some of this budget product and am not yet prepared to vote for it on the House floor, passing it out of committee is an important step in keeping our promise to keep tax reform momentum and get it on President Trump's desk. I hope conservative concerns can be adequately addressed through an amendment process on the House floor."

Another Budget Committee Republican who voted for the plan, Rep. Mark Sanford, R-S.C., may not vote for final passage, a GOP aide said.

Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., who is chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, told the Washington Examiner that more than three dozen lawmakers do not support the budget plan, which is enough to sink the legislation since it must pass entirely with GOP votes.

Moderate Republicans, meanwhile, say the spending cuts in the budget are too steep.

"I've got concerns," Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa., told the Washington Examiner.

No Democrats back the plan, in part because it cuts domestic spending and spends more on defense. The GOP plan would fund the domestic discretionary budget at $511 billion and the defense budget at $621.5 billion.

Meadows noted that the House has begun the process of passing 2018 spending bills, moving forward without waiting for a budget resolution to pass. In that way, the budget plan doesn't matter much to Republicans as a guide for upcoming spending bills.

"We are already appropriating, so it doesn't matter," Meadows said.

But the budget does matter to Republicans because it will set up a path for tax reform legislation that can be more easily passed in the Senate under the so-called reconciliation process. For that reason, Meadows believes Republicans should drop plans for a budget until they develop a tax reform plan and then try to pass the budget.

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Republican budget at risk in the House - Washington Examiner

Kansas City Star

Republican rift over Medicaid, familiar to Kansans, now stymies Obamacare repeal Kansas City Star When Vice President Mike Pence complained recently that the Affordable Care Act's Medicaid expansion had put able-bodied adults ahead of people with disabilities, Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a fellow Republican, quickly jumped in to dispute that and ... and more »

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Republican rift over Medicaid, familiar to Kansans, now stymies Obamacare repeal - Kansas City Star