Despite abandoning his own 2010 re-election bid earlier this week, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty maintains that the Republican party as a whole needs to focus on next year's elections rather than look ahead to 2012.
"We need to make sure that we have ideas that matter, that help people ,that are consistent with values and principles," he said in an interview with the Ripon Forum, a publication of the Republican policy group the Ripon Society. "So nobody should be looking ahead to 2012."
And Pawlenty has plenty of advice for what type of ideas the party should embrace.
Pawlenty said the GOP needs to improve its message "on bread and butter issues like how am I going to get my kids through college, how am I going to pay for my health care, how am I going to have my children get a good education without breaking the bank."
"Republicans can fill that void," Pawlenty said. "We've got better ideas and values around those issues."
He also said that the GOP and conservatives "have made a mistake historically by not more fully engaging on the health care issue," which he called one of the "leading issues in the country." Pawlenty said health care is a "great opportunity" for Republicans to contrast with Democrats and their government-centric approach.
The two-term Minnesota governor is trying to play down speculation that he is positioning himself for a presidential run in 2012, but his frequent media appearances since his announcement declining another run for governor have done nothing to dampen the rumors.
Appearing Wednesday on the Fox News program "Your World With Neil Cavuto," Pawlenty said he simply wanted to "lend voice nationally and in Minnesota how my party can improve and be a -- still a conservative party, but be a modern, forward-leaning party."
Added Pawlenty, "that's going to be as a volunteer, something I just feel strongly about. But I'm not ruling anything in or out. I am just saying I don't know what I'm going to be doing three years from now."
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Comments
RINO - the true believers will rightly cast you out. You don't belong in the GOP.
Posted by: billp
| June 6, 2009 2:00 AM
Gov. Pawlenty did not perform his due diligence before he spoke. The American Enterprise Institute, CATO, The Heritage Foundation and many other conservative and libertarian groups have been offering various free market solutions to the health care problem for decades. Tim, the info is there, start Googling! derekcrane
Posted by: derekcrane
| June 6, 2009 10:24 AM
Thank goodness for the intolerant, out of touch, knee-jerk right. I just hope they cast out all of their moderates sooner rather than later, to assure the GOP's permanent minority status.
Posted by: mag_amberson
| June 8, 2009 8:42 PM
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