Pawlenty speaking tour heads to Florida

Posted at 10:45 AM on August 5, 2009 by Curtis Gilbert (4 Comments)

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty will add a stop in Florida to an August speaking schedule that already includes appearances in Chicago and Puerto Rico.

Pawlenty, an oft-mentioned potential GOP presidential candidate, will give the keynote speech at the Republican Party of Florida's Statesman's Dinner in Orlando on Aug. 22.

"Given the number of critical races facing our state in the 2010 election, and the significant issues facing Republican values on the national level, I cannot think of a Republican Statesmen (sic) more appropriate to join Florida Republicans for this exciting celebration of our great Party," Flordia GOP Chairman Jim Greer said in a statement posted to the party's Web site.

Update 2:50 p.m.: Then on Sept. 19, Pawlenty heads to Mason, Ohio to headline a fundraiser for the state GOP, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported Wednesday.

Comments (4)

You took this story directly from a Pawlenty PR Machine news release, didn't you?

I suppose we're going to have to hear about every little speech he gives between now and the next RNC national convention.

Your (sic) [sic] notation is interesting. It probably refers to the spelling of "statesmen." But I would argue that it could also apply to the fact that Pawlenty was called a statesman.

This is a blog, right? How about offering some critical analysis of these Pawlenty campaign stories?

One thing I do want to know about all these campaign trips is whether or not we taxpayers are paying for any of his expenses, and if he is using his vacation time or unpaid time to make these trips.

Posted by Jamie | August 5, 2009 12:14 PM

Florida is spelled wrong in the title.

Posted by Andrea | August 5, 2009 12:59 PM

Thanks for the cacth (sic) :)

Posted by Curtis Gilbert | August 5, 2009 1:40 PM

Jamie's question about travel expenses deserves an answer.

Also, does the Governor have any protective service or other government provided staff involved ?
Are all these trips booked through a campaign staff or does the Governor’s staff get involved ?
As I recall there were many complaints when Governor Ventura was traveling. Candidate Pawlenty promised that he would have only one job if elected Governor ... and although his involvement in the National Governor's Association is appropriate, his Vice-chairman status with the Republican Governors Association is purely partisan (plus his radio gig).
A sidebar question would be, does the Governor fly First Class as Governor Sanford did … or are airplanes furnished by supporters ?

I assume his salary is not predicated based on hours worked, yet considering the financial crisis that the State is experiencing, it would be an appreciated gesture, if Pawlenty "refunded" an amount based on the number of days that he is on his "speaking" tour.

Posted by Minnesota Central | August 7, 2009 10:50 AM

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