Republican National Convention

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Arizona Republicans say U.S. Sen. John McCain’s presence at the top of the ticket will benefit down ballot GOP candidates in the state.

The only debate among those gathered here for the Republican National Convention is just how much McCain will help.

Speaking before the state’s delegation breakfast meeting, U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Phoenix) said, “Even if John McCain wins by a safe 10 points, he could be a three-point difference for some of our congressional candidates and others. That’s what the experts say John McCain could be for our down ballot candidates.”

But Arizona Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen is even more optimistic about the McCain effect.

U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl: Getty Images PhotoST. PAUL, Minn. - U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Phoenix) acknowledged today that Senate Republicans faced fundraising difficulties heading into the fall elections, but he suggested that Democrats would fall short of the 60-seat mark needed to override a filibuster.

“I’m not going to predict to you that we take the Senate back. I don’t think that’s going to happen. But I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere near the point where we wouldn’t be able to assert our authority as the minority to stop legislation,” Kyl told reporters outside a breakfast meeting of the Arizona delegation at the Saint Paul Hotel.

Kyl argued that Republicans had opportunities to win seats in several states including Colorado and Louisiana, and he predicted that the party would hold onto its seat in New Hampshire.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has been getting some attention this week for obtaining earmarks during her tenure as mayor of small town Wasilla, Alaska.

But that hasn’t kept Palin from winning the singing endorsement from one of the GOP’s noted anti-earmark renegades, U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Mesa).

“She’s a real plus,” Flake told PolitickerAZ.com in a short interview in the lobby of the Saint Paul Hotel today. “She has a record of going against the establishment, cutting spending while she was governor, and she will be a good influence.”

Flake, a four term congressman, represents the 6th Congressional District.

U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell (D-Tempe)ST. PAUL, Minn. - David Schweikert provides Republicans with their best chance of stealing the U.S. House seat currently held by Democrat Harry Mitchell, one top analyst told PolitickerAZ.com today.

“I think Schweikert was probably the Republicans’ best nominee,” said David Wasserman, an analyst for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.

Schweikert, a former Maricopa County treasurer, is fresh off a victory in Tuesday’s Republican primary. To get the nod, Schweikert beat out lobbyist and former Scottsdale City Councilwoman Susan Bitter Smith and a host of other Republicans.

“He cuts the most outsider image of the bunch,” said Wasserman, who had just wrapped up speaking at a breakfast sponsored by National Journal.

U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Phoenix): Getty Images PhotoU.S. Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Phoenix) has been tapped to officially enter John McCain's name into nomination at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn. today.

Kyl is on the national campaign committee of his fellow senator from Arizona, but was not originally slated to do the nominating honors. According to CNN.com, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal was set to nominate McCain, but had to return to his home state to address the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav.

While Republican candidate Sandra Livingstone anxiously awaits the results of the 1st Congressional District GOP primary, her top adviser, John Echols, will be 1,500 miles away hobnobbing with the party elite in St. Paul, Minn. at the Republican National Convention.

Echols, a delegate to the RNC from the 1st district, has been running the campaign of former State Department official Sandra Livingstone, who is facing off against Sydney Hay for the Republican slot on the congressional ballot. The conflict means that he's been out of town for the last few days, while the campaign enters its final hours.

When asked if that was a sign that Echols knew which way the race was going to go, he emphatically said it was not.

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Tim Bee will walk to the GOP nomination in the 8th Congressional District today, but don't expect to see the state Senate president at this week's Republican National Convention.

"We're focusing on the campaign on the ground in Tucson and Pima County," said Bee spokesman Tom Dunn, explaining the candidate's decision not to make the trip to the Twin Cities.