Capitol View for October 12

Good morning. Well Twins fans, it was fun while it lasted.

Can Steve Scalise close the deal in the House speaker race? It’s anybody’s guess, but the outlook was shaky despite the Louisiana Republican’s nod of support from an internal GOP vote Wednesday. The real vote will come on the House floor and some of his colleagues were threatening to hold support when their names are called in the yet-scheduled vote. Some could be holding out for leverage behind last-minute rules or spending demands; others say they don’t want Scalise in the chair. NPR writes that Scalise’s first test will be unifying Republicans behind him. Either way, the leadership vacuum has kept the House tied up in knots for more than a week now. AP has more on what’s next.

Also hanging in the balance is the future of Rep. Tom Emmer. As our Dana Ferguson has reported, the Minnesota Republican is primed to fill Scalise’s shoes as majority leader. But there is still chatter that some Republicans could still turn to Emmer for the big job if the speaker’s race remains a quagmire.

Flags are half-staff in Minnesota in honor of Israel. In making the declaration, Gov. Tim Walz encouraged individuals and businesses to also fly their flags at half-staff to remember, mourn and honor victims of the attacks. Read his proclamation here. The Minnesota Department of Transportation says it plans to illuminate the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis through Friday night with blue and white. Those are the colors of the Israeli flag. Walz was set to receive a White House briefing with other governors on the situation in the Middle East, where the death toll on both sides of the conflict is now above 2,500. U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken stood by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for public remarks in Tel Aviv today, conveying news that at least 25 Americans are among the dead and that the U.S. government is full-square behind Israel.

The Minnesota tax rebate pie was split among nearly 2.1 million taxpayers, but it turns out the slices could have been bigger. Dana Ferguson asked why the state paid out just shy of $1 billion in rebates when it had been projected to send back $1.1 billion in one-time payments. It turns out that budget crunchers overestimated how many Minnesotans would be eligible for tax rebate checks, largely because fewer dependents qualified than expected.

Legislative Republicans renewed attention on the school resource officer issue that was prominent during back-to-school season. Dana (again) reports that Republican lawmakers are again urging DFLers at the Capitol to call a special session to clear up confusion over a law governing use of force in schools. Members of the House and Senate GOP held a listening session with police and educators to highlight concerns. Earlier this year, lawmakers passed a law change that bans prone holds on students, as well as restraints that impede their breathing. Rep. Jeff Witte says there needs to be a clarification. “When you know that your job, your career could be in jeopardy, if you do the wrong thing, we've got to fix the law, we've got to have this hearing. And we can't keep having these conversations behind closed doors saying we have a fix when there isn't clearly a fix." Democrats insist a special session isn't necessary. Attorney General Keith Ellison has issued two opinions clarifying when force is justified.

Keeping this here another day because Dana will clearly need help! That MPR News Capitol and politics reporting job is up. Apply here to check out the qualifications.