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Zach Bartman, 20, junior, Gettysburg College

State chair, Pennsylvania Federation of College Republicans

Zach Bartman. (Photo: Nia Prater, Medill News Service)

How long have you been a member of your schools Republicans chapter? Ive been a member for three years. Ive been the state chairman for the Pennsylvania College Republicans for one year.

What made you pursue that position? I actually interned on Kasichs campaign and was kinda inspired to get further involved in the political process.

Future plans? I want to practice law for five to 10 years at least, and possibly run for office after that.

What sort of work do you do at your school chapter? Were active with promoting conservative candidates on campus and in our communities. We raise awareness through the student body as well as provide a spot for people who have conservative leanings on campus.

What would you like to see from the Trump administration? Id like to see the focus on two main aspects and that would be the economy and national security. I think those are the two main focus points that won Trump the election and he needs to really follow through with those promises to reduce security risks and to promote economic prosperity and job creation.

Thoughts on 2016? People are sick of the interest groups really controlling the candidates and lobbying firms and people who are obviously donating a lot of money. Theyre sick of that system and they wanted to see someone who has no connection to that. Someone who is an outsider who can fix the broken system.

Why did you attend the inauguration? Its kind of like a culmination of all the hard work that was put in through the fall. All the emotional attachments to your candidate, you want to celebrate that win. Im gonna see a lot of friends this weekend that I worked with.

Chair, Texas Federation of College Republicans

Jessica Browning. (Photo: Nia Prater, Medill News Service)

How long have you been a member of your schools chapter? Since my freshman year. At the A&M College Republicans, Im the activities director. For the Texas Federation of College Republicans, Im the state chair. My responsibilities are mainly just to communicate with all my chapters, help build chapters, spread conservative ideologies and teach really what the Republican Partys about to get young people involved in the party.

What do you want to see for your chapter? Mainly for all my chapters, I just want to see them grow. Continue to break those Republican stereotypes that a lot of times we hear. They say the Republican Party is old white men. And a lot of people dont think that Republicans are young and diverse and they really differ within the party.

Future plans? Mainly just going to law school, focusing on constitutional law and international law. I mainly want to stay in the private sector and help with policy. I dont really ever want to run for office or get involved with that. I just want to help those individuals who are in office make decisions and help push the country in the direction that the people want it to go in.

What do you want to see from the Trump administration? I want to see our budget under control. I want to see us cut our national debt.

Why attend? This is just an election like no other. It was very hard on everybody, Republicans and Democrats. It was a very tough election year, and it has finally come to a close. I worked on some campaigns throughout this. This is the end of the election cycle and I just really want to see that.

State chair, Massachusetts Alliance of College Republicans

Ben Rajadurai. (Photo: Nia Prater, Medill News Service)

How long have you been involved with your chapter? Since the day I first came on campus, so four years now. The College Republican community both in our state and across the country is really just a big family and provides a really great network to get involved and find like-minded people, and its been valuable to me for all four years. The way Ive always seen it the more we can encourage discussion among friends on an equal playing field, our ideas will win. Thats really what we encourage on our campuses as well as activism.

Future plans? Im undecided. When I first started political science, I did it to go to law school. And then I got an internship with the Sean Bielat campaign. He ran for Congress a few years ago, didnt win. But, once you do one, you kinda get hooked.

What issues do you want the new administration to address? A big one for me has always been education. When were growing up, were always taught that if you work hard in school and you get out there and do your best, youre gonna be successful in the long run. And I think what weve seen in the last few years, especially in our low-income cities and our low-income schools, that dream just isnt a reality for far too many students. And I think the pick of Betsy DeVos was a very smart choice to shake up the education establishment and fix a system thats failed a lot of our students for far too long.

Hopes for the future? In Massachusetts, Id love to see Republicans win the youth vote in 2018.

State chair, Nebraska Federation of College Republicans

Caitlin Holman. (Photo: Nia Prater, Medill News Service)

How long have you been involved in your chapter? Ive been a member since I started college. I just finished up 2 and a half years of being chapter chair at the University of Nebraska. And Ive been on the executive on both the state level and the chapter level

Thoughts on 2016? I saw a lot of young people really wanting to get active, really wanting to learn and get involved.

What issues do you want the new administration to address? Foreign policy is really important to me, especially our relationship and our role in the Middle East. I really want him to be thoughtful and really consider a lot of different angles when hes making decisions. I was pretty critical of Obamas decision to pull troops out, so Im really excited to see how he handles a lot of those complex relationships that we have in the region.

State chair, North Dakota College Republicans

Austin Emineth. (Photo: Nia Prater, Medill News Service)

Thoughts on 2016? This election was huge on social media. So what its done is its gotten people inspired of all sorts, of all parties.

Proudest moment? Weve actually had members that were campaign managers for some of the state elections. One senate seat hadnt been Republican ever before, and a College Republican was actually the campaign manager for them.

Thoughts on Trump? I think hes got the motivation. Hes ambitious and hes ready to go. I think that entrepreneurship is kind of the heart of America. I think thats what Donald Trump represents.

Hope for the future of the Republican Party? I just think its important to work across the aisle and be bipartisan. History has kinda shown that its the best way to do it. We cant just ignore someone because of their party. We have to work with them.

What do you want to see for your chapter? I want to see the involvement stay. I want to see kids keep going. I dont want it to be, Hey we won! We dont have to pay attention anymore! Thats not the case. We have to hold Trump accountable and actually stay engaged.

Future plans? I love business. I love the way it operates. I would also consider doing something to serve my country, if that means through D.C. or state legislature.

Aileen Chuang and Nia Prater are reporters with Medill News Service.

Originally posted here:
We talked to College Republicans at Trump's inauguration -- here's what they said - USA TODAY

A contingent of California Republicans celebrated in Washington, D.C. Friday night as they rose as early as 4:30 a.m. for the Inauguration ceremony for President Donald Trump and danced into the night at one of the official Inaugural Balls that drew

OAKLAND, Calif. (KTVU) - A contingent of California Republicans celebrated in Washington, D.C. Friday night as they rose as early as 4:30 a.m. for the Inauguration ceremony for President Donald Trump and danced into the night at one of the official Inaugural Balls that drew tens of thousands of people.

RNC National Committeewoman Harmeet Dhillon of San Francisco was there with her husband.

"The President set the tone of this event to be a people's event so while in prior years there have been balls that have cost thousands of dollars to attend, the tickets for this ball is $50 each and so it really is very accessible to the average American," Dhillon said.

Hundreds of Californians attended the inauguration ceremony. Northern California Trump campaign volunteer Jon Cordova was there with his wife.

Dhillon says the event was inspiring.

"I'm an immigrant so I'm really excited as a citizen to be able to celebrate a peaceful transition of power like this and frankly, you take the politics out of it, it's just something to celebrate as an American," Dhillon said.

In the Bay Area, some 100 Republicans watched the inauguration on television at the downtown Campbell restaurant Socialight.

"We're very hopeful for the future and excited about the Trump presidency," said Shane Patrick Connolly, the treasurer of the Santa Clara County Republican Party.

"Things can be better...give this administration a chance to do some things. I think some people want to stop things before they even get started," said Frank Jewett, a Santa Clara County Republican

Former California Republican Party Chair and author Thomas Del Beccaro says California's economy could benefit from the Trump administration through tax reform and economic stimulus, but the state could suffer on some issues such as trade.

As for California and immigration, Del Beccaro says wait and see.

"A comprehensive immigration bill will trail Obamacare, the Supreme Court justice, a tax reform bill. All of those will come before they tackle immigration. So I actually think you'll see not that big of a change in the first six months of his Presidency."

Friday marked a beginning of a shift in the political winds, that many California Republicans say they welcome.

Original post:
California Republicans attend Inaugural Ball with hopes President Trump will bring brighter future - KTVU San Francisco

Its hard to imagine at this particular moment, but Republicans and Democrats can be friends.

Courtesy of Ritesh Desai

This is Ritesh (his friends call him Rick) Desai and Tony Patel. Theyre in Washington D.C. for the inauguration. Desai is the one in the red sweater. He is a staunch Republican and believed all along that Trump would win. Patel is the one in the blue tie and shirt. Hes a die-hard Democrat. He supported Hillary Clinton. He calls her Hillary.

The two Indian-American men own an architectural and construction material business together in Georgia and have been politely bickering about politics for years. At a time when partisan politics seems to have split the country into a bitter place, Desai and Patel offer proof that its entirely possible for Ds and Rs to be Fs (friends, that is).

Right now hes on a high. He gets to put Trump stickers everywhere, the 52-year-old Patel says of his Republican friend. Im letting him enjoy the moment.

Desai laughs remembering the time in 2008 he came into work one day, and Patel had put up Clinton stickers everywhere. It was OK, the 40-year-old Desai says now. He put up Romney stickers at work in 2012.

The morning after Election Day this year there was no rubbing it in. Desai knew his friend was in shock like a lot of other people Patel had thought Trump didnt have a shot. Desai gave him his space. I took the high road in not rubbing it in, he said.

They traveled up to D.C. from Georgia on Thursday afternoon to attend a fundraiser with a business partner. Desai told The Huffington Post on Friday morning that he was feeling amazing to be at Trumps inauguration.

Patel had a different take. Honored to have seats to witness the inauguration, he said in a text message. Campaign 2020 starts soon for my team, but today is about America.

Over the years their discussions about politics have been heated, for sure, they said. Recently they had some intense exchanges over Donald Trumps tweets about revered civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.).

However, both agreed that its pointless to demonize the other side. You have to be able to talk to those you disagree with, they said. You can have a conversation, Patel said, adding that you cant just reflexively shoot down everything a Republican says. Some Republicans were doing that to Obama. Thats not the right move. You should meet in the middle.

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Proof That Republicans And Democrats Can Actually Be Friends - Huffington Post

WASHINGTON Ebullient Republicans celebrating Donald Trump's inauguration today see so much opportunity: Rid America of the Obamacare scourge, slash stifling government regulations and taxes, overhaul the tax system, reassert America's authority on the world stage and finally push the teachers union out of the way of school accountability.

"We'll employ more people and get people back to work, bring more businesses back to our country and help our inner cities," gushed Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, an early Trump supporter. "And being chief legal officer of the state of Florida, I'm thrilled we'll have a new Supreme Court justice who will follow the rule of law."

The moment is indeed historic, at long last near free reign for Republicans to put their ideals into practice and show Americans what conservative governing can mean to their day-to-day lives. With the Supreme Court tilting to GOP control, as well, they stand to shape America for generations to come.

Since World War II, Republicans have controlled the presidency and both houses of Congress for only six years four during the George W. Bush administration and two during Dwight D. Eisenhower's administration.

So among the Floridians in tuxedoes and ball gowns streaming into the gilded Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium on Wednesday night for an inauguration ball, we heard appropriate hints of anxiety.

"We have the biggest opportunity in the world. It's like catching a unicorn and we just cannot screw it up," said U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Okeechobee. "We've got to make sure we're working together because we can do some good things. I've been waiting for eight years to do some of the things we've talked about."

The GOP has been formidable and effective as the opposition party. Now, it's the governing party.

The last time Republicans held the trifecta of the White House, Senate and House of Representatives, they sent the national debt soaring and helped birth the tea party rebellion against a party widely seen as having lost sight of its core principles. George W. Bush left office with an approval rating of 22 percent, while Barack Obama leaves with 60 percent approval.

"We have to avoid falling back to what got us in trouble in the first place, which is not listening to what people want. As much as I love George W. Bush, that was an era of big spending that we can't fall back into," Florida Republican Party Chairman Blaise Ingoglia said.

"Our opportunity here is to show the people we are the antithesis of what happened in 2008, when the Democrats had all three and we got the disaster that is Obamacare and Dodd-Frank," said Ingoglia, a state representative from Spring Hill. "We sat around for eight years complaining about everything, and now we have a chance to show it wasn't just complaining for the sake of complaining. If we can show people tangible results in their daily lives, then we can control the narrative for a generation."

What we don't know yet is whether America is about to see a period of virtual one-party government or a de facto coalition government made up of Democrats, Republicans and Donald Trump, the populist/nationalist with no clear ideology.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott rode into office on the no-compromise tea party wave of 2010 (and more than $70 million of his own money). He hosted the Florida inauguration ball in Washington on Wednesday night, and many of his guests sounded just fine with the prospect of Trump serving as a check on bad instincts of Republican lawmakers.

"You have to be willing to make some compromise to get things done. It requires sometimes not being completely true to your principles," said Miami lawyer Guillermo Fernandez.

St. Petersburg retirees John and Vicki Majors said they trust Trump's instincts more than the Washington crowd. Businesspeople focus on how to get things done, she said, while members of Congress too often focus on how best to raise campaign donations.

"I don't believe he is 100 percent committed to either party, so he'll call out Republicans if he has to as quickly as he'll call out Democrats. That's what we like about him," she said.

Majors pointed to Trump's response when Republican House members this month moved to gut the independent Office of Congressional Ethics.

"Trump said, 'What are you doing?' and they backed off. I think if we don't see progress and moving in the right direction, he'll call them out," he said.

Entering office with the lowest approval ratings of any president-elect in the history of polling, Trump may find Republican leaders more willing to challenge him than they would if he enjoyed wide support.

"He's going to be given a lot shorter honeymoon than most presidents have been given," said former Florida Republican Party Chairman Al Cardenas. "You go in with 40 percent approval rating, the runway gets a lot shorter. He's going to have to do well and do well early."

Trump probably will score early points with the conservative base when he chooses someone to replace the late Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court, but he also is promoting potentially budget-busting initiatives, including a massive infrastructure program, replacing the Affordable Care Act and a large military buildup.

He has no interest in reforming entitlement programs, long a top priority of House Speaker Paul Ryan.

"If we don't seize this moment to enact bold conservative reform, shame on us," said newly elected U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Fort Walton Beach, who serves on the House Budget Committee. "Paul Ryan understands this nation's structural financial challenges as well as anyone in the county, and I think you're going to see a fiscal discipline under his leadership that you did not see under John Boehner."

Democrats, even after winning the popular vote in six of the past seven presidential elections, are in disarray and in little mood to cooperate with the GOP majority that spent eight years opposing virtually everything Obama wanted.

In Washington, Republicans control the executive branch and legislative branch, and Trump could appoint as many as four Supreme Court justices. Outside of Washington, they control more than two-thirds of the partisan state legislators, 33 governorships, and in Florida and 24 other states hold both the legislature and governor's mansion.

Welcome to the Republican era.

"It's exciting and a little bit scary, because it's now fair for voters to say, 'Okay, you guys control the government. It's time for you to deliver. If you don't, we're going to hold you responsible,' " said Orange County Republican Chairman Lew Oliver. "Democrats have done a lot of damage over the last eight years, and it will take a little bit of time to fix it. It can't happen overnight. But if we don't deliver, I'll be mad at us, too."

Times Washington bureau chief Alex Leary contributed to this report. Contact Adam C. Smith at asmith@tampabay.com. Follow @adamsmithtimes.

Donald Trump presidency gives Republicans free rein at last: Time to deliver 01/20/17 [Last modified: Friday, January 20, 2017 10:34am] Photo reprints | Article reprints

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Donald Trump presidency gives Republicans free rein at last: Time to deliver - Tampabay.com

The Colorado Republican congressional delegation is talking a lot about replacements for Obamacare, as if they have something in mind, or many options to choose from, without actually pointing to an actual factual replacement.

As an example of how Republicans disguise their absence of a plan as a plan, check out this passage from a Jan. 13 Denver Post opinion piece, authored by all of Colorado's GOP members of Congress (with the glaring exception of U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner.)

And speaking of replacement plans, the narrative that Republicans have offered no plan to replace Obamacare is false. Republicans have introduced multiple alternative health care plans since 2010, and we encourage you to review them. The most recent replacement plan was offered by the Republican Study Committee, called the American Health Care Reform Act. The Empowering Patients First Act was a plan put forth in the 114th Congress by future Health and Human Services Secretary, Dr. Tom Price. Our Better Way Agenda also includes a blueprint for replacing Obamacare that is centered on more choices, lowers costs, and greater flexibility.

Many plans does not mean you have a plan. Gentlemen, which plan do you favor, if any?

Even though Gardner didn't join his colleagues in the Denver Post opinion, he made a similar statement on KOA 850-AM Jan. 13 (audio below):

Gardner: "We have introduced several bills -- hundreds of bills, really -- small and big over the past several years to replace Obamacare. Some are very targeted, some are much more comprehensive: legislation by Tom Price --soon to be the Secretary of Health; legislation by Dr. Barrasso, a Senator from Wyoming who is a physician; legislation from Bill Cassidy, a physician himself from Louisiana that will be introduced next. These are all going to be considered as part of the replacement once it's repealed."

Hundreds of bills! Small and big! Very targeted! All will be considered! (But, alas, still, no plan.)

But, it's worth noting, and it's in fact newsworthy, that Colorado's congressional Republicans are saying the Price plan is in the mix, because analysts say that millions of people would lose their health insurance under Price's proposal. And Price is Trump's nominee for the Department of Health and Human Services.

The Cassidy plan, also mentioned by Gardner, would leave millions of people uninsured or underinsured, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

In fact, Trump's promises aside, I can't find someone who's making a credible case that any of the floated Republican plans, either individually or combined with one another, won't throw millions of people off the health insurance rolls. (Here's a look at a few more GOP plans.)

9News anchor Kyle Clark noted Gardner's awareness of the problem, reporting that Gardner "would not commit to having an Affordable Care Act replacement that covers everyone with insurance now."

But the big numbers involved might explain why Gardner literally turned and walked away from Vox.com editor Sarah Kliff when she asked about coverage under the Price plan, because millions lose it.

The numbers and obfuscation also are the reason reporters should press for an answer to the questions about a replacement plan and its impact. And not mince words in informing us of non-answers.

Listen to Cory Gardner on 850-KOA Jan. 13.

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Beware of Colorado Republicans Claiming to Have Multiple Replacements for Obamacare - Huffington Post