Tim Pawlenty Criticizes Sarah Palin's Crosshairs

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty recently criticized Sarah Palin and her vilified campaign use of crosshair imagery to target legislators for unseating, saying he "wouldn't have done it."

Pawlenty, who seems to be in the midst of charging up for a potential presidential run, also gave a half-hearted defense of the former Alaska governor, telling The New York Times that "there's no indication at present that those cross hairs, Fox News, any particular commentator or show or set of remarks or person was a motivating factor in his thoughts." Despite this contention, however, he still seemed to think the illustration was a bad idea.

"I wouldn't have done it," Pawlenty said.

On Tuesday, Pawlenty repeated similar comments.

"It wouldn't have been my style to put the crosshairs on there, but there's no reason to believe it had anything to do with this mentally unstable person's rage," Pawlenty said Tuesday on ABC's "Good Morning America," according to The Hill. "There's a line there as it relates to basic civility, decency and respect."

In an interview on ABC News's "Nightline" last week, Pawlenty also expressed cautious respect for Palin, calling her a "force of nature" on the political scene.

Despite claiming that Palin was an influential GOP force with the "tools" to run for President, Pawlenty also appeared to express some degree of regret that Palin, not he, had been chosen as John McCain's running mate.