Pawlenty plans a quick jaunt to Mexico to meet with president

The trip comes amid a flurry of activity for the governor, including a fundraiser, a hunting trip and a speech in Iowa.

By RACHEL E. STASSEN-BERGER, Star Tribune

Last update: October 29, 2009 - 8:32 PM

Gov. Tim Pawlenty will take a quick trip to Mexico early next month to meet with Mexican President Felipe Calderon and business leaders, he announced Thursday.

The trip came together in a hurry. On Wednesday, Calderon confirmed he was available to meet with Pawlenty on Nov. 9. Pawlenty will fly to Mexico Nov. 8 and return to Minnesota on the 10th.

"By sharing Minnesota's successes with business and political leaders in Mexico, we hope to expand an already strong relationship," Pawlenty said.

Mexico is Minnesota's sixth-largest export market, rising from 13th over the past 10 years.

Pawlenty was first invited by then-President Vicente Fox in 2004. The last official trade mission to Mexico was nine years ago, led by former Gov. Jesse Ventura.

Ana Luisa Fajer, Mexican consul in St. Paul, said the Mexican government has stressed getting "more of Mexico in the world and more of the world in Mexico" and has extended invitations to visit to many governors.

Pawlenty will meet privately with Calderon, speak at an event at the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico and attend a networking event hosted by the U.S. Embassy.

The trip comes at a busy time for Pawlenty, who is considered a possible 2012 presidential candidate. He will hold the first major fundraiser for his new political action committee in Minneapolis on Wednesday, go to the Thief River Falls, Minn., area next Friday and hunt in the deer opener Nov. 7, then head to Iowa to give a political speech in that early caucus state later that day. On Nov. 8, he'll leave for Mexico.

Pawlenty has taken at least 17 foreign trips during his time as governor, including trade missions to Poland, the Czech Republic, China, India, Israel and Canada. He plans a trade mission to South America in early December.

The cost of the trip isn't yet pinned down, said Tony Lorusso, executive director of the Minnesota Trade Office, but the state will likely be able to pay for it out of funds set aside for trade missions, not out of the state's general fund.

Staff writer Bob von Sternberg contributed to this report. Rachel Stassen-Berger • 651-292-1064