Pawlenty Whacks Sanford: "Troubling And Hypocritical"

Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.) offered one of the harshest rebukes from within the Republican Party of Mark Sanford, suggesting on Sunday that the South Carolina governor was hypocritical and had damaged the GOP at a time when the brand was already hurting.

"It's hard to quantify [the damage he has done]," said Pawlenty. "But clearly there has been damage. Any time you have leading figures who are engaged in behavior that's sad and troubling and hypocritical other people are going to look at that and say, 'Hmmm, they don't walk the walk. And so the words and the actions don't ring true."

Later in his segment on CNN's "State of the Union," Pawlenty would not push back against suggestions that Sanford had been directly derelict in his duties when he traveled to Argentina to conduct his affair. "Your staff has to be able to reach you and reach you quickly," Pawlenty said. "He should not have left the state and not allowed people to know how to contact him if something happened. That's obvious."

Both Pawlenty and Sanford have been discussed as possible contenders for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012. Sanford, naturally, has dropped from that discussion after his admission of marital misconduct. Still, it was curious to see Pawlenty take a shot at his gubernatorial compatriot. Other Republicans have either avoided the Sanford topic altogether or framed the issue as a personal, not professional, miscue.

But the Minnesota Republican didn't just slap Sanford on the wrist for leaving the state to meet his mistress. He also applauded Sanford's wife for not appearing alongside him during his emotional and lengthy press conference in which he confessed to and apologized for the matter.

"It's a sad and troubling situation with Jenny and Mark Sanford. I know them. I'm proud of Jenny for her strength and her commitment to her family and keeping that family together. Frankly, I was glad to see her not standing at the press conference like many have, and kind of charting her own path. Saying, look, I'm willing to forgive him, but I'm not going to stand here and condone this in any way."

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Comments

[thundermummy]

Pawlenty certainly knows what it means to be derelict in one's duties.

[lcdbsez]

thunder --

Good one!!!

[KLordsha]

They eat their own.... Nice..

[jcole]

Every body but Rush.

[Decipherer]

Taste like chicken.

[LMPE]

Is Pawlenty referring to just Sanford, or the entire GOP?

[jcole]

The GOP is falling apart because the hypocrisy of their label, family values, where was Mr Sanfords values when he left his children and wife when he went around the world to get laid,yet he say gays will break up marriages the republican use morals and values to degrade other people's
the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2) . (2) the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage - same-sex marriage b. b the mutual relation of married persons wedlock c. c the institution whereby individuals are joined in a marriage, i hope that these republican learn not to judge other people.

[jcole]

They will not say anything about Ensign and Vetter and Criag and Forley, at least they are even two stright and two homosexualy.

[lazercat2008]

According to FiveThirtyEight Pawlenty rates 25th place in Approval Ratings for Repuglican Govenors. If he does not hit paydirt soon, he will be applying for a lobbyist position in 2010. This explains all the flailing and skweeking he has been doing lately.

[Decipherer]

Um, would that make him worse than last, since the GOP only controls less than 1/2 of statehouses (that would be 25, total)?

Am I missing something?

[lazercat2008]

He's pretty low on the list.

[lazercat2008]

"In just under an hour today, Governor Pawlenty has done more damage to Minnesota than he has throughout his entire career," said House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher.

"It appears the governor is going to be leaving the state in even a harsher situation than we anticipated when he leaves office," said Assistant Senate Majority Leader Tarryl Clark, a Democrat from St. Cloud.

His biggest single unallotment item will delay nearly $1.8 billion in payments to schools, a move that may force some school districts to borrow money or cut spending while they wait.

Cities, counties and townships will lose $300 million in aid, while human services spending will absorb $236 million in cuts.

The governor said he's confident his use of the unallotment power would withstand a court test. A 1939 statute allows the top finance official, Management and Budget Commissioner Tom Hanson, to undo or delay payments during a deficit, with the governor's approval. It's the third time Pawlenty has invoked the power, which had been used only three times before him.

-------

The President of the U.S. was granted the power to line-item veto legislation in 1996. In 1998, U.S. Supreme Court ruled that law unconstitutional. Most state governors retain this power, however.--­WCCO

[darthmaul]

These guys are like a pack of wolves, or maybe worse. If they smell blood, even if it's one of their "friends" they will turn on them and attack if they see it as advantageous.

[pghnappyrhino]

so there IS one high-profile republican who has the stones to state the obvious?

[lazercat2008]

"When the local cable TV crew asked one 8th grader what he thought of meeting the governor, he answered, “I don’t believe a word he said! He totally has no plan for Minnesota, and he has a crazy idea about burying carbon in Canada.” Many were disappointed in the lack of concrete results, but most felt the forum was helpful and informativ­e."

--Kai Bosworth junior, Macalester College in St. Paul, MN

[yukoner1]

He must have his fingers crossed that no one finds the (skeleton) key to his closet.

[baseballmom]

If the past is any predictor of the future, this must mean that Pawlenty will be the subject of an embarrassing revelation any day now...

[lazercat2008]

Hoffman: "But I still think there are some interesting connections between the U.S. and France on immigration, in particular with respect to the exploitation of labor imported from other countries.­.."

He interrupts, growing impatient: "Have you looked at all at the case of Toronto? There's a place where immigrant labor is increasing to the point where the number of immigrants is exceeding the number of native residents.­.."

Gov. Pawlenty: [emphatically] "You know, ultimately, I think this problem is too big for local government. Ultimately I think the Feds. are gonna have to take this on."

I wish he had said that earlier. I would have been able to say something about how it was dangerous to let "the Feds" take control of this. How that would contribute to a militarization process that ought to be avoided. How the ICE raids in Worthington and Austin had destroyed families and communities, circumvented protocols of due process and democratic deliberation, violated human rights, and undercut local economies. I'm tempted to ask if he thinks he might lead that Federal effort (as VP), but I censor myself. (I regret this now.) He continues, with the first hint of condescension.

Gov. Pawlenty: "You use a lot of big words."--M­N Law & Politics

[123dee]

Unbelievable, Pawlenty is sticking his 2 cents into SC business when he
hasn't taken care of the senate seat business in his state. What a loser.

[jcole]

What that is called is a(slight of hands, ) make it look like you are the righteous person, speak one way and behind close doors take the mask off.

[Eriq]

The GOP is hypocritical and is tanking fast because the Right Wing is ALWAYS hypocritical, lying, and always more corrupt than the center or the left. Period.
That includes Pawlenty.
It's GREAT to see these piranhas fighting over the little, tiny bit of constituent influence out there.

[jcole]

Why we the American people let these people keeping lying to us is beyond me.the republican have been using these tricks for years and we have not caught on yet, war, morals and values which they don't have, president Bush started a war for political reason and over 4000 of our US citizen are dead, but the republicans want to tell a woman what to do with her body and gays will break up your marriage, tell me where is the logic in that.

[lazercat2008]

"Governor Pawlenty has claimed that city local government aid (LGA), the revenue sharing mechanism to keep local property taxes in check, has “really gotten out of control” and that “we need to trim the program.” Like the crew of the Enterprise in the new Star Trek movie, Pawlenty must be living in an alternate reality.

The current LGA formula was designed by the Pawlenty administration in 2003 and implemented the same year. During Pawlenty’s tenure as governor, funding for LGA has fallen dramatically. From 2002 to 2008, city LGA has fallen by $80 million prior to the cuts that the governor imposed last December; after the cuts, final 2008 LGA will be $134 million (24%) less than it was in 2002. Since when does a 24% cut over six years equal “out of control” growth?"--MN2020

[lazercat2008]

LAZERCAT: How's that case in Minnesota coming along?

PAWLENTY: "Well, as your viewers may know, Minnesota law does not allow the governor to sign an election certificate until the state court process is complete. It is not yet complete, but it may be about to be complete.

And, when it is, and they direct me to sign the certificate, I'm going to sign it. There's not going to be some undue delay or the like. But I'm going to follow the direction of the courts in that regard. And we're going to have a decision here in the coming weeks."

LAZERCAT: "So, you could be signing a certificate that would turn that Senate seat over to the Democrat, Al Franken, and that would probably not suit you well."

PAWLENTY: "Boy, I hope not, but, you know, I have to follow the law, "

LAZERCAT: "So you'll sign it, Right?"

PAWLENTY: "If the Minnesota Supreme Court says, you sign the certificate, and there is not an appeal or some other contrary direction from a federal court, that is my duty.

LAZERCAT: "Just sign it you spineless dict.ator