Video: Pawlenty addresses WCPAC
posted at 3:39 pm on October 17, 2009 by Ed Morrissey
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Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty gave last night’s keynote speech to the gathered conservative activists at Western CPAC, and delivered a lengthy, policy-rich speech that highlighted his strengths on experience and ideas — and his current shortcomings as a national campaigner. I’ve highlighted a three-minute cut from a 36-minute speech that caught Pawlenty at his best in terms of leading and encouraging grass-roots outreach to centrists and independents while maintaining and defending core conservative values. By explaining what conservative ideals mean in real-world applications, Pawlenty argued, we find that many more people support those values than we expect:
Governor Pawlenty has a middle-class authenticity that serves him well in connecting with people on a personal basis, and a grasp of policy that makes him a formidable presence for television. However, if Pawlenty expects to inspire the kind of movement he needs to make a serious run at the presidency, he needs to find a way to generate energy and enthusiasm in these kinds of grass-roots settings. It’s not even really the speech itself, which would read as exceptionally good on paper, or his delivery, which is natural and engaging. It was probably too long by a considerable amount for this kind of event, which really needs exhortation and inspiration more than reflection and policy.
Pawlenty has a handicap in that Minnesota mostly rewards politicians who avoid that kind of passion on the stump. Al Franken deliberately made himself boring to build credibility as a serious candidate, and Amy Klobuchar came by in naturally. Even Jesse Ventura, the obvious exception to this rule, ran more as a “none of the above” candidate in 1998. If Pawlenty wants to move to the top tier of potential presidential candidates in the next electoral cycle or two, then he needs to find his internal fire and learn to spread it better.
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Betty White is dead. Which would describe Ann’s brain.
HornetSting on October 17, 2009 at 6:29 PM
Betty White isn’t dead but I think Ann’s brain is.
txag92 on October 17, 2009 at 6:42 PM
Actually I think Ann has come a long way since she started posting here. We may yet see her modify or even change her position on abortion.
darwin on October 17, 2009 at 6:44 PM
Dear Mr. Sting: I may be clueless about many things, but I know that Ann isn’t brain dead.
Loxodonta on October 17, 2009 at 6:45 PM
Actually I think Ann has come a long way since she started posting here. We may yet see her modify or even change her position on abortion.
darwin on October 17, 2009 at 6:44 PM
I think ann is bipolar. Sometimes she says things that are passable as normal then sometimes she is off the chart nutty. I guess it depends which direction the wind is blowing.
txag92 on October 17, 2009 at 6:47 PM
This particular hornet is female.
darwin on October 17, 2009 at 6:48 PM
Drats! Wrong again!
Loxodonta on October 17, 2009 at 6:48 PM
Really? I could have sworn you admitted, not too long ago, that you did vote for him.
AUINSC on October 17, 2009 at 6:49 PM
I was certain Ann was female!
Loxodonta on October 17, 2009 at 6:49 PM
Really? I could have sworn you admitted, not too long ago, that you did vote for him.
AUINSC on October 17, 2009 at 6:49 PM
As I just said….. BIPOLAR.
txag92 on October 17, 2009 at 6:51 PM
The Important questions for Tim Pawlenty:
1. Who is watching his children while he as at CPAC?
2. Is he the father of all of his children?
3. Did Tim Pawlenty accept a cake from constituents, or does he wear clothing with commercial merchandising?
portlandon on October 17, 2009 at 7:06 PM
There’s also a another word for that kind of thing…escapes me right now…starts with the letter ‘l’.
AUINSC on October 17, 2009 at 7:10 PM
His initial hand motions in this clip are “?”.
lansing quaker on October 17, 2009 at 7:14 PM
OT: John Ziegler got kicked out of the Western CPAC convention by David Keene?
portlandon on October 17, 2009 at 7:31 PM
He needs to get to the point in less than a minute. Any Democrat in a federal race can lie faster than that.
Chris_Balsz on October 17, 2009 at 7:47 PM
Ed,
Attendants don’t get a hard copy of the speeches ever, or unless you request it as a blogger?
I know El Rushbo is the exception to the rule, since he speaks out of pure gray matter. :D Nice tidbit Ed, thanks for that one; is it boring or how you compare it to the other CPAC?
ProudPalinFan on October 17, 2009 at 7:53 PM
If I am not mistaken Yawnaplenty is not running for re-election but see nothing wrong in collecting a pay check at tax payers expense. Isn’t he also running around the nation promoting himself and raising funds while still in office. Boy something abot this strikes me as not to ethical and putting yourself before your constienance. but as we all know a certain AK Gov. stepped down instead of putting herself and her state in the exact same postion as I mentioned above and some how she has no shot at 2012. Yes, the last part is was and will always be sarc. I would rather support the former Gov. of AK than the current Gov. of MN in this situation.
Clyde5445 on October 17, 2009 at 7:53 PM
sorry about the spelling for got to run spellcheck.
Clyde5445 on October 17, 2009 at 7:56 PM
I guarantee you that most African Americans and Hispanics are conservative.
African Americans and Hispanics will NEVER vote for a Republican. . . but they would vote for conservatives.
The Repbulicans aren’t conservative. The myth of the century is that Republicans are conservative. They never have been. They want power as much as the Democrats. They just spend the money differently. We need someone to say STOP SPENDING MONEY THAT YOU DON’T HAVE!
ThackerAgency on October 17, 2009 at 3:50 PM
Dude I am the exception of the rule; I am Latina. In Puerto Rico there is a Republican wing and a Democrat wing. Of course Dems are a stronger force BUT I don’t believe the Democrat principles are explained to them. They go by partisan politics which do not reflect necessarily the values that people may hold. Remember one thing: THE GOP HAS TO HOLD PRIMARIES IN US TERRITORIES LIKE THE DIPTICK PARTY! I have typed this till Kingdom Come; Hillary won in Puerto Rico because of the strong relations and attentions the Clintons gave to Puerto Rico. When Bill Clinton announced the death of a soldier born and raised in Puerto Rico, he always said “an American soldier”.
In a nutshell, it is better for Puerto Rico to have a Republican president and a Republican Governor in Puerto Rico. That is not the case now. There is a “Republican” governor in PR, and a Democrat Resident Commish (1 voice no vote for 4 million people), Pedro Pierluisi. This is weird but it works for PR because of the charlatans that we have now.
Now Mexicans, if they care for this stuff, ask them….other Latinos, ask them…
Now feel free to call me a wise Latina woman/sarc.
ProudPalinFan on October 17, 2009 at 8:02 PM
Oh and who are the jackasses that are letting the McCain losing camp to continue sucking talent away, or DESTROYING talented politicians?
I tell ya I can’t wait for Sarah’s book. If Joe The Plumber could dish it out… *grin*
ProudPalinFan on October 17, 2009 at 8:04 PM
Seems I mostly only post “well said, I agree” but everyone here just says it better than I can. So (yet again), well said and I agree.
beachgirlusa on October 17, 2009 at 8:05 PM
Lox, you are so nice. You can find goodness in everyone. Yes, I’m sure Ann is a good person, but her politcal beliefs give me heartburn.
HornetSting on October 17, 2009 at 8:05 PM
That’s what I was thinking. Like Melanie in “Gone With The Wind” lol He’s (or she) is very gracious, well-spoken, kind and compassionate.
beachgirlusa on October 17, 2009 at 8:13 PM
Pawlenty has been a Cap & Trade guy for years, now a few days ago I read that suddenly he’s not for Cap & Trade.
Why the change? Has Pawlenty really read the science and noticed that it’s fraudulant or has he just come out against the losing Cap & Trade name, but actually still supports every policy that Al Gore put under Cap & Trade?
RJL on October 17, 2009 at 9:02 PM
We need a really good leader to lead us out of the fiscal mess we’re in, and to keep the country safe/protect our interests abroad. I really don’t think Pawlenty is that guy.
He’d make a solid VP selection though. IMO.
therightwinger on October 17, 2009 at 9:29 PM
I think Romney is a good call for the fiscal leader and good leader period but my wildcard is Jim Demint.
Dire Straits on October 17, 2009 at 10:13 PM
Trolling gives me heartburn. As to differing political beliefs, I like the notion of having a marketplace of ideas, where I can hanker over, buy, or walk by what people are offering. I often learn from people with whom I disagree.
I don’t want the GOP to be monolithic, one size fits all. And I also don’t think that sells well to the public at large. So, I like reading about and from a wide variety of Republicans, like Tim Pawlenty. He might not be able to win a nomination for dog catcher in your home town, or for governor in your state, but Pawlenty is far superior to the likely alternatives in Minnesota.
This doesn’t mean we can’t tease one another and even get angry at times. I do. The thing is, I really don’t like holding grudges. I’d much prefer holding you, my dear.
Loxodonta on October 17, 2009 at 10:20 PM
Thanks. I’m an old-fashioned old man who lives like a hermit. Here’s my picture. As you can see, I’m very shy and reserved. And no matter what anybody tells you, I am never, ever naughty.
Loxodonta on October 17, 2009 at 10:34 PM
LOLOLOLOLOL I needed that laugh.
beachgirlusa on October 17, 2009 at 11:18 PM
Post of the thread, everything after this is just chatter, including anything I write!
gary4205 on October 18, 2009 at 1:26 AM
Here’s all you need to really know, besides Pawlenty is the most boring man alive.
Sarah Palin’s Facebook friend count:
928,789 supporters
Tim Pawlenty’s Facebook friend count:
9,043 supporters
Over 100 TIMES as many as T-Paw!
I’ve listed before, but since others have their dream Palin administration…..
Sarah Palin, President (of course)
Liz Cheney, Rick Perry, or Michelle Bachmann. (any would work, but for some reason I think Perry will be it, even though I personally like Liz)
John Bolton, Secretary of State (are you kidding me, there is no one else!)
David Petraeus, Secretary of Defense
Steve Forbes, Secretary of Treasury
Rudy Giuliani, Attorney General
Duncan Hunter, Homeland Security
Palin was once the Alaska state chair of the Steve Forbes for President campaign, btw.
gary4205 on October 18, 2009 at 1:45 AM
Assess his records.
Do the same assessment like what they did to Sarah Palin [now they're doing it to Bachmann].
Check out the results of his management in MN.
And you go back here and tell us what you find.
TheAlamos on October 18, 2009 at 2:45 AM
They won the nomination and were in the lead with 80% wrong track with a president of the same party. It took a financial collapse and wrong track ratings similar to Hungary at the fall of communism to beat him, so let’s be realistic. They were in an impossible situation, and as easy as it is to monday morning quarterback I still haven’t heard a single realistic strategy that could’ve won in those circumstances.
I like Tim Pawlenty and personally couldn’t care whether or not he makes me feel inspired or fired up. Government should not be a prominent enough feature in our lives that a President could even possibly be the Motivator in Chief, let alone that being a necessary precondition of the job. That said, the world would be a very different place if politics was the way I think it should be, and excitement lowers information costs. So I guess the fire is something he needs to develop or he needs to get out of the way.
galenrox on October 18, 2009 at 3:52 AM
He’s hard to understand, I don’t speak Noodlie
Jeff from WI on October 18, 2009 at 5:40 AM
You had me nodding yes until you hit Rudy Giuliani, Attorney General. No pro baby killer as the man in charge of our laws.
Jeff from WI on October 18, 2009 at 6:12 AM
The Attorney General is there to prosecute the laws. I’m ok with Rudy doing that. He does it well. Judge no, law maker no, President no but prosecutor yes.
IowaWoman on October 18, 2009 at 7:23 AM
Planned Parenthood hides statutory rapists. Will Rudy go after P.P. or look the other way to keep his pro-abortion friends happy. I want P. P. prosecuted.
Jeff from WI on October 18, 2009 at 8:03 AM
One day you’ll grow to be big and stong like this guy:
http://www.skylinepictures.com/Alabama_Crimson_Tide_al52_small.jpg
beachgirlusa on October 18, 2009 at 11:50 AM
Jeez, T-Paw will give Mittens a run for his money as far as being charisma free.
DB9 on October 18, 2009 at 12:06 PM
Listen to your teacher. Repeat after me:
I won’t grow up,
I don’t want to go to school.
Just to learn to be a parrot,
And recite a silly rule.
If growing up means it would be beneath my dignity to climb a tree, I’ll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up! Not me! Not I, Not me! Not me!
I won’t grow up,
I don’t want to wear a tie.
And a serious expression
In the middle of July.
And if it means I must prepare to shoulder burdens with a worried air, I’ll never grow up, never grow up, never grow up! Not me! Not I! Not me!
So there!
Loxodonta on October 18, 2009 at 2:46 PM
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