Tim Pawlenty, Possible McCain Running Mate, Says GOP Needs Obama's Positive Message

ARLINGTON, Va. — Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, often mentioned as a possible running mate for Republican presidential candidate John McCain, said Wednesday GOP candidates would do well to adopt a positive tone like that of McCain's Democratic rival, Barack Obama.

"Say what you will about Barack Obama," the Minnesota Republican told a conservative group, "people gravitate when you have something positive to say." He added that McCain has been positive as well.

"People want to follow hopeful, optimistic, civil, decent leaders," Pawlenty said in a speech to GOPAC, which helps recruit Republican candidates. "They don't want to follow some negative, scornful person."

Ronald Reagan still offers important lessons for today's Republican Party, Pawlenty said, because the former president was civil, optimistic, pragmatic and a good communicator.

"He actually had some ideas," Pawlenty said, adding that the Republican idea factory has seemed "a little stagnant in recent years."

Pawlenty, 47, said he came of age during President Reagan's tenure in the 1980s, but acknowledged the Republican icon is ancient history to young people.

"If you're under 40, that was a long time ago, man," he said to laughter.

The party needs to update its message to appeal to voters who want new ideas and government results and to counter the perception that Republicans are "not for the working person," Pawlenty said. He advocated policies like better training and performance pay for teachers, online college education opportunities and reworking health insurance to reward providers that show good results and save money.

Pawlenty shied away from talking about joining McCain on the ticket.

Comments

[MsDoc]

Seems to me they just need a running mate who can breathe and speak in complete sentences.­..oh, and remember the script.

All of which would be an improvement over their candidate.

[SouthpawSass]

The GOP wants their guy to be everything Obama is not and so far, they've pretty much hit it on target. Let's review:

Obama is intelligent, determined to do the greatest good for the greatest number, postive, focused, in touch, sincere and generally has an upbeat message.
McCain is not so intelligent, determined to do the greatest harm to the greatest number, negative, distracted, out of touch, disingenuous and generally tetchy...

Finally, Obama is black and McCain is neon white...

Did I forget anything?

[Grunty1]

You could go the "young and vibrant" vs "old and tired".

And perhaps the most important one:
O'bama had to fight his way up the ladder
Mc'Cain was born at the top of it.

[bodo]

As a senior citizen McCain has an advantage over Obama when trying to find a VP who is younger than himself. Finding somebody who is older would be a lot harder.

[sullydog]

Obama is hip to the internet, McCain watches the Google.

[ccmd]

Thats 2 Obamacans down...

[BPCentrisAmerican]

Pawlenty is right, since Reagan, the Republican Party has become increasly under the influence of the Christian and neo-conservative zealots forgetting they are governing real people out here and not just their own shrinking base. Bush 41, although somewhat obtuse did realize the country is a diverse group of people with different ideas, a concept zealots can’t seem to grasp. If you’re a so-called Evangelical Christian, spreading the faith is what is expected of you with no compromise or tolerance for others. Although George Bush barely won by 51% in 2004 he made no attempt to listen to rest of the country who did not support him and in reality that 51% was actually closer to 30% and his 2nd term started downhill with his Social Security scam. With just about zero support from both parties, Bush traveled to 60 cities trying to push and agenda which had no interest.

The 24% or so still loyal to Bush angrily call Washington Journal and wine about the liberal media and spew talking points from Rush and Fox, whom spend their time spewing talking points from the RNC. One commentator on Larry King last night mentioned that 78% of Republican women will support McCain and an equal percentage of Democratic women will vote for Obama. What she did not mention that Republican registrations have contracted in recent years. The Reagan coalition has evaporated and they have George Bush to thank for it.

[cwhig1848]

Re the Evangelicals, this post is out of date. The unified GOP bloc is crumbling as younger Evangelicals turn to reading the Gospels instead of watching the 700 Club.

[poco767b]

They just need to appear to have a positive attitude, if they win they can reinstate the Joy police.

[poco767b]

Crocodile tears.

[nick1936]

Don't underestimate them for they have managed to get people to vote against their own interest for years just raise the issue of same sex marriage and the hell with health care and all that stuff that would help the middle class.

[InfosolutionWiz]

Nick,

I Could Not Say It Any Better!!

[sawdustinhershoes]

So, he says they need a better image and then lies and says McCain has been positive. Any irony here?

[SeanGardner]

Pawlenty is right.

Its amazing though, if Obama "can't win" and has "no ideas" and "has no legislative accomplishments", then why are Republicans like Gov. Pawlenty praising him? Why did Republican U.S. Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon tout his bi-partisan work with Obama in two camapign ads? Why did Republican Susan Eisenhower, the great graddaughter of Pres. Eisenhower, endorse Obama for president back in February because of his ability to work across party lines?

We can go on and on and on about the praise that Republicans are heaping on Sen. Obama.

His sense of optimism and hope will be badly needed when he is elected president, and begins the process of reversing Bush's disastrous policies.

[fuzzwald]

Here in Minnesota, Pawlenty's claim to fame is the crumbling infrastructure. He put a political hack in charge of our DOT in order to protect his tax cuts, and that resulted in fewer inspections, fewer repairs, a bridge collapse in a major freeway artery (13 dead), falling concrete, and other emergency bridge closures. Having spent the last few years positioning himself for a run at the VP slot, his solutions to the crumbling bridges and roads has been band-aids, duct tape, and on-the-cheap projects after the fact.

Case in point: the new I-94 bridge is being finished several months ahead of schedule by a low-bid contractor from Colorado. It will be years before the verdict is in, but it reeks of CYA and pass it to the next guy.

[mh01]

Here in minnesota, Pawlenty's claim to fame has been fiscal responsibilty.

Here at huffpo the claim to fame is on blaming people for something, even when the NTSB (you know, the guys that actually know about this kind of thing) are still investigating 1 year later exactly why it happened. And you pin that on the governor? What a joke.

It brought attention to the issue, and focus on the danger, and how did Pawlenty respond, by making damn sure it doesn't happen again. How? by inspecting and finding other potential problems and DEALING with them, even if that means emergency closures.

As for your Case in point. Its more like a pointed lie. The I-94 bridge is being completed several months ahead of time because of the decision to make a bigger, wider bridge to allow for growth, and to do it quickly and get traffic moving again by incenting the contractor to get it done quickly through potential bonuses.

And please check your facts: it didn't go to the low cost bidder, according to Popular Mechanics, "The winning team—Flati­ron-Manson and FIGG—didn’t submit the lowest price or the shortest schedule, but it did demonstrate the most know-how." http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/transportation/4258053.html?page=4

[sullydog]

10 points for you!

[Scarllatti]

Whether you agree with Pawlenty or not, the guy is absolutely right. The power-grabbing empty heads in the GOP have elevated ignorance and buffoonery to an art which is a sad commentary to a nation which wants to be looked upon as the 'beacon of light' to the rest of the world. My main concern is that there are citizens who unfortunately can vote who buys into these aversion to cerebral reasoning which the GOP and Fox news are dishing out to them. They are effectively creating a generation of zombies for their political games.
Pawlenty should be commended on having the courage to tell his party that they are going bunkers.
If the GOP choses to do that, I suggest they leave the American citizens out of this trash.

[TrooAmerican]

youre right.

There are a few Republicans out there saying the truth that needs to be said. Regardless if its for survival or because they have integrity, its the same statement.
Basically, the GOP DOES work for special interests. The party doctrine is Lower taxes and regulation on corporations to allow them to make unlimited gouging profits off consumers without any penalty for predatory practices and cheating the public....­. Well we see where thats gotten us:
INcompetence at FEMA, Total Useless wastes of money and no security at HSA, Lead covered toys, Fatal heparin, fatal dog food, bugged IT devices, no help for the Veterans for the first 4 yrs of this war, complete budget disasters while they had control of congress - the highest amount of pork barrel waste in history, the highest amount of vacations and time off from congress's duties in history, and the biggest government and most bribes in history.
its insanity.

GOP survival strategy? - pull head out of backside

[Grunty1]

"Regardless if its for survival or because they have integrity"

Pawlenty definitely belongs to the former.

[BCubedReg]

Another VP candidate throwing himself under the straight talk express. Must know that he really isn't on the short list for VP.

[PHM]

Sounds like he's smart enough to know that the straight talk express is headed straight over the cliff and he wants to be the GOP candidate in 2012...mak­es him a pretty smart cookie.

[Grunty1]

He probably doesn't want to be. Anyone who decides to journey over the waterfall with Mc'Cain is going to end their career, permanently.

[BCubedReg]

Yeah. I was thinking the same thing.

[Kane]

John McCain has employed on his campaign team the very people that smeared his family and brutally attacked his daughter in 2000. What message does that send to his young daughter and the rest of his family, and what does that say about McCain's honor and love of family, not to mention what it says about his priorities.

[PHM]

What it says it what is and always has been true...McC­ain has no character. He was a legacy baby at Annapolis, an incompetent pilot, an adulterous husband, and rode to his Senate seat on the green backs of his trophy wife. An empty suit? No...a suit filled with complete and utter cr@p.

[cj124]

saw this guy host a govornor's convention on energy on cspan, if he is the real deal, quite impressive

[Grunty1]

He's a "real deal" Republican: willing to gamble with people's lives to put out tax breaks for the wealthy, at the cost of the middle class.

[CoulterIsASuccubus]

How can he be expected to be taken seriously with a POSITIVE ATTITUDE in the Republican party?

[Ipanema]

Indeed, positive approach/attitude and the Repugnant Party don't go together. These geezers are entirely negative in their approach, which can me resumed as: "let's destroy the opponent with made-up personal factoids and that should be enough to win this election. We don't have to discuss the issues because we are right by definition­." Unfortunately, this works wonders with an un-informed electorate, as evidenced by the fact that Bush was elected twice in a row!

[Scarllatti]

Well, you can even find salvation in unexpected places I guess.

[DFutureIsNow]

Mitt Romney also praised BO, dont believe me? Check it out for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPGnJmbDq08

GO Mittens!

[Scarllatti]

Great! Great!! Great!!!! Greaaaaaaa­at!!!!!!!!