Tim Pawlenty's Team

Tim Pawlenty

Possible 2012 Presidential Candidate

Pawlenty served as Minnesota governor from 2003-2010. He grew up in South St. Paul and was the first person in his family to graduate from college. He earned a law degree from the University of Minnesota and worked as a criminal prosecutor. Pawlenty was elected to the Eagan city council in 1989 and to the state House of Representatives three years later.

Vin Weber

Co-Chair

Weber is Managing Partner of Clark & Weinstock. He consults organizations regarding dealings with the federal government. Weber represented Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District from 1981-1993. He has counseled numerous presidential campaigns.

William Strong

Co-Chair

Strong is the vice chairman of Morgan Stanley. He was Illinois chairman for John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign

Alex Conant

Communications Director

Prior to joining the Freedom First PAC, Conant was the press secretary and senior adviser for the Republican National Committee. He's also served as a spokesman in the White House and U.S. Senate, and worked on Norm Coleman's 2002 U.S. Senate campaign. Conant grew up in Saint Paul, Minn., and graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Terry Nelson

Senior Adviser

Nelson served as campaign manager for Sen. John McCain until July of 2007. He was a senior adviser to McCain's Straight America PAC. Prior to joining George W. Bush's presidential campaign in 2002, Nelson founded Crosslink Strategy Group. Nelson was also deputy chief of staff and director of political operations for the Republican National Committee.

Sara Taylor Fagen

Senior Adviser

Fagen helps Fortune 500 companies and trade associations with strategic planning and crisis management. She served as a senior aide and White House political director for President George W. Bush. During the 2004 presidential campaign, she served as a senior strategist helping to direct the president's message development, paid media strategy, and opinion research. She played an important role in ad targeting for the campaign's $220 million advertising effort.

Phil Musser

Senior Adviser

Musser is president of New Frontier Strategy, a strategic communication and public relations consulting firm. In 2007, Musser served as a senior adviser to the presidential campaign of Mitt Romney, and senior adviser to the campaigns of Gov. Matt Blunt of Missouri and Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana. He currently advises a variety of state and local leaders nationwide.

Brian Haley

Financial Director

Haley has been the finance director for Sen. John McCain's PAC and served as the 2008 McCain campaign's deputy fundraiser.

Brian Hook

Policy Director

Hook was named deputy assistant secretary of state in March 2008. Prior to that he served in New York as a senior adviser to the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. He was the ambassador's lead negotiator on Security Council resolutions imposing multilateral sanctions on Iran, Sudan, Al-Qaeda, and the Taliban.

Sarah Crawford

New Hampshire Adviser

Crawford is COO and a founding partner of b-fresh, a consulting firm. She was the field director for Sen. John McCain's 2000 presidential campaign and helped set up Straight Talk America, McCain's Political Action Committee. Crawford served as a senior campaign adviser to McCain 2008 until he won the GOP nomination.

Charles W. Larson, Jr.

Iowa Adviser

Larson specializes in communications with the legislative and executive branch of the federal government, media relations, and international business and trade. Larson was appointed by President George W. Bush to be the U.S. Ambassador to Latvia. Prior to his appointment, Larson served from 2003-2007 as an Iowa state Senator. From 1993-2001, he was a member of the Iowa House.

Karen Slifka

Iowa Adviser

Slifka specializes in developing and managing grassroots, grasstops and public relations campaigns. Slifka served as Midwest regional political director for the Republican National Committee where she advised state parties and candidates for federal office in 8 states throughout the upper Midwest. In 2004, she served in a similar capacity for President George W. Bush's re-election campaign and directed the grassroots campaign in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Mindy Finn

E-Strategist

Finn started her career as a journalist but transitioned to politics. While at Engage, a "full-service interactive agency," Finn co-conspired the Rebuild the Party coalition with Patrick Ruffini and has served as an online strategist for the Republican Governor's Association, the Bob McDonnell for Governor campaign, the Heritage Foundation, the Young Guns PAC, and dozens of campaigns and organizations. Before joining Engage, Finn served as the director of "e" strategy for the Mitt Romney for President campaign in 2008.

Brian McClung

Minnesota Volunteer Adviser

McClung is the owner of McClung Public Relations. He has more than 14 years experience working in public relations, politics, government affairs and media. He served six years as Pawlenty's chief spokesman, working alongside Pawlenty during numerous legislative battles, his successful re-election campaign and crises including tornadoes, floods and the I-35W bridge collapse.