Pawlenty dances around veepstakes at guvs' confab

PHILADELPHIA - Gov. Tim Pawlenty seemed to be doing his best to confound the political tea-leaf readers at the Nation Governors Association (NGA) this weekend, where he will hand off the chairman's gavel to Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell on Monday.

In Friday's opening press conference on the famous "Rocky steps" at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pawlenty ambled up to the microphones sporting a blue open-collar shirt, in contrast to the ties worn by Rendell and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter.

Was this the "summer casual" look of a vice-presidential wannabe arriving on the national stage? A signal that's he's not interested? Or was it intended to convey youthful hipness, a quality that might balance the age of GOP candidate John McCain?

Either way, the 47-year-old Minnesota governor wasn't saying.

In an interview Saturday, Pawlenty once again said he hadn't been asked for any financial or other documents as part of a vetting process by McCain's staff, but he also said he didn't think that signaled anything one way or another.

At the Friday event, Pawlenty had told a joke about an outtake in the Sylvester Stallone movie, made some general remarks about states "leading the way" on energy policy -- his signature issue as NGA chairman -- and then parried the inevitable questions about his prospects as McCain's running mate.

Rendell, a Democrat who has been mentioned as a potential running mate for Barack Obama, did the same, insisting that he does not see this summer's governors' meeting as a platform for diving into deeper political waters.

"I don't think it's an audition," he said.

"I want to make the same pledge," joked Nutter, the only one of the trio who is not generally mentioned for a possible White House run. "I do not want to be considered for vice president."

Governors association meetings typically are bipartisan policy forums devoted to matters like public finance and states' relations with the federal government. Addressing the meeting Saturday, former President (and ex-Arkansas governor) Bill Clinton called it "the center of wonkdom."

But with a half-dozen of this year's participants thought to be in the running for one of the two major party presidential campaigns, the scent of politics was stronger than usual.

Among those taking part in the procession of governors Saturday were Virginia Democrats Tim Kaine and his predecessor Mark Warner, both potential Obama picks, as are Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius and Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, who sported a bolo tie and blue jeans.

Swan song

On the Republican side, in addition to Pawlenty, was Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. Other GOP contenders such as Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney were absent.

For Pawlenty, Saturday's governor's confab in the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts was his swan song as NGA chairman. It was his show and he was determined to keep presidential politics in the background, despite Clinton's appearance.

"We pride ourselves on keeping that out," Pawlenty said. "If things get too hot, we look for things we can achieve consensus on."

He acknowledged, however, that the politics "might be out in the hallways."

Whether or not Pawlenty or any of the other governors end up on a presidential ticket, almost all of them will play a significant part in the election -- at least in their own states.

"Governors have historically played a role as surrogates for the candidates," said Pawlenty, a national co-chairman for the McCain campaign. But the official agenda of the governors' meeting did not stray far from the bipartisan script, which centered on the governors' "legacy of leadership."

The unmistakable subtext: Governors of both parties make great national leaders.

On that score, Rendell and others give Pawlenty bipartisan credit for dedicating his year-long chairmanship to the energy crisis, which Pawlenty called the "defining issue of our time." There's also broad gubernatorial consensus that the solution to the energy crisis is more likely to be found in the states than in Washington, where Congress has been deadlocked on any significant energy initiatives.

"We have to find answers, and I believe this room is where they will be found," said West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, a Democrat.

That's not to say the governors are any more unified than their colleagues in Congress or in the two presidential campaigns. In another appearance with Pawlenty on Saturday, Rendell spent some of his time dismissing McCain's idea of a summertime federal gas-tax holiday, a proposal Pawlenty has embraced.

But in an arena where command presence and collegiality count more than scoring debate points, the national press gaggle paid closer attention to whether Pawlenty was speaking with or without the use of notes or a teleprompter. (He used both).

And whether or not voters pay much attention to governors' policy speeches, the political operatives who vet potential vice presidential candidates do.

"The NGA chairmanship is a good credential," said former Minnesota congressman Vin Weber, a seasoned GOP power player in Washington. "It's not that he [Pawlenty] or any other chairman of the NGA has changed the world in their term, but it shows leadership and familiarity with the issues."

Whether that translates into interest in presidential politics, neither Pawlenty nor any of the other nearly 40 governors and former governors in the meeting would say.

In a good natured poll, moderator and presidential historian Richard Norton Smith put the question to all the governors at once: "Does anybody here want to declare their candidacy or non-candidacy?"

For once, no one had anything to say.

Kevin Diaz • 202-408-2753