politics
With an insider’s eye, Hot Dish tracks the tastiest bits of Minnesota’s political scene and keep you up-to-date on those elected to serve you.
Contributors in Minnesota: Jennifer Brooks, Baird Helgeson, Mike Kaszuba, Patricia Lopez, Jim Ragsdale, Brad Schrade and Rachel E. Stassen-Berger. Contributors in D.C.: Kevin Diaz and Corey Mitchell.
Contributors in Minnesota: Jennifer Brooks, Baird Helgeson, Mike Kaszuba, Patricia Lopez, Jim Ragsdale, Brad Schrade and Rachel E. Stassen-Berger. Contributors in D.C.: Kevin Diaz and Corey Mitchell.
resize text 
subscribe via RSS
Posts about Gov. Tim Pawlenty
Minnesota tax revenue beats target by $145 million
Posted by: Baird Helgeson Updated: October 10, 2012 - 5:13 PM
Minnesota tax collections beat estimates by $145 million over the last three months as the strengthening economy caused consumer spending to rise.
The state took in $3.75 billion from taxes and other revenue in the first quarter of the 2013 fiscal year, 4 percent more than budget officials predicted, according to Minnesota Management and Budget.
All four major areas of revenue beat the estimates. Income tax collections were up $42 million, to $1.9 billion. Sales tax revenue edged up $17 million, to $1.02 billion. Corporate tax collections saw the largest percentage gain, up $41 million, or 15.3 percent.
An extra $45 million in other revenue came from an unexpected surplus from the workers’ compensation plan and stronger than expected mortgage and deed taxes from home sales and mortgage refinancing.
Since February, revenue has exceeded projections by $444 million.
Budget officials warned that the economic rebound has not met expectations, however.
“The U.S. economy has not performed as well as hoped since the end of the Great Recession,” according to Minnesota Management and Budget. “We have escaped the downward spiral.... But we have not, as yet, been able to shake off the economic inertia produced by the longest and deepest recession in the post-war period.”
Minnesota Management and Budget officials still see signs the economy will continue improving.
“Consumer confidence has increased, auto sales are more than 50 percent above their lows, and housing starts, while still at disturbingly low levels appear to be recovering,” according to the agency.
However, the agency said, slow global economic growth and political uncertainty at home and around the country could be a drag on growth through next year.
The upbeat revenue assessment does not include a look at state spending, so it does not paint a complete picture of the state’s budget.
A more nuanced look at state finances will come in early December when state officials release the state budget forecast.
Promoted Justice on Twitter
Posted by: Rachel E. Stassen-Berger Updated: October 8, 2012 - 10:27 AMSupreme Court Justice G. Barry Anderson may be making history, 140-characters at a time.
The justice, first appointed to the high court by Gov. Tim Pawlenty in 2004, is using promoted tweets to advance his campaign to stay on the court. He is among the first prominent Minnesota politicians to use promotion, Twitter's version of online advertising, in his campaign.
For targeted Twitter users, promoted tweets appear in their timelines and are clearly marked as advertising. National campaigns and businesses have, for months, used the advertising system to get their messages to users -- and generate revenue for Twitter.
The promotion, "allows Justice Anderson to quickly and easily update voters about the Minnesota Supreme Court, his background, and campaign for reelection. Recent promoted tweets have included information about e-filing, the fact that four Governors support Barry Anderson for re-election: Carlson, Pawlenty, Quie & Anderson, and that in 2006, he received 1,457,164 votes - more than anyone running for statewide office of any type that year," said Grant Anderson, the justice's son and digital director. He said the campaign plans to continue using Twitter advertising through Election Day.
Grant Anderson said the campaign has also used Facebook for campaign outreach, as do many campaigns. Justice Anderson's Facebook page has more than 1,600 fans and one of his posts on Facebook had more than 130 "likes" by Monday morning.
The incumbent justice this year may face more of a re-election challenge than usual for high court posts. Dean Barkley, a prominent Independence Party member appointed by former Gov. Jesse Ventura to the U.S. Senate, is running against him. In 2008, Barkley got 15 percent of the vote. Barkley has 60 Twitter followers and 84 Facebook fans to Anderson's 334 followers and 1,600 fans.
No incumbent justice has lost a post through election in 66 years.
Pawlenty exits public stage to lead financial lobbying group
Posted by: Kevin Diaz Updated: September 20, 2012 - 3:16 PM(With Jim Spencer)
Pawlenty, a former presidential candidate and vice presidential finalist, also announced Thursday that he is quitting his position as national co-chair for Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, where he has been a high-profile surrogate.
As he exits the national stage, Pawlenty becomes president and chief executive officer of a high-powered private-sector organization that paid his predecessor $1.8 million a year.
“We sought him out,” said Scott Talbott, the Roundtable s senior vice president for public policy.
The position will make Pawlenty one of the top voices of the financial services industry in Washington at a time when Republicans are seeking to reverse many Wall Street restrictions passed in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.
Pawlenty, however, agreed to leave parstian politics behind for at least two years, and possibly more.
“He is committed to work for the Roundtable for the foreseeable future,” Talbot said.
That commitment takes Pawlenty out of contention for widely speculated runs against either Gov. Mark Dayton or U.S. Sen. Al Franken, who are both up for reelection in 2014. It also rules out a cabinet post that some of his closest associates thought possible if Romney were to defeat President Barrack Obama.
Pawlenty’s decision to leave the Romney campaign in the critical home stretch of a race with the GOP candidate slipping in the polls raised further douts about the prospects for Romney’s campaign, which has come under criticism from some Republican strategists.
“In some ways it is surprising that he didn’t wait until after the election,” said University of Minnesota political scientist Kathryn Pearson. “He could have waited to see if Romney won and he got a cabinet post.”
Pawlenty, a former two-term governor, served as one of Romney’s top advisors, spoke at the Republican National Convention, and often appeared on television and at campaign events on Romney’s behalf.
Several Minnesota Republicans who have worked with Pawlenty or know him well say the move into the private sector is a logical step for him financially as well as politically.
“It certainly doesn’t close any doors for elective office,” said Minnesota Business Partnership leader Charlie Weaver, Pawlenty’s former chief of staff. “He can still scratch that itch, but at the same time be in the private sector and pay for his kids’ college.”
Pawlenty’s job at The Financial Services Roundtable will pay a lot more than any political office or appointment. While the lobbying group would not release Pawlenty’s annual salary, filings with the Internal Revenue Service show that the Roundtable paid Pawlenty’s predecessor, Steve Bartlett, $1.8 million in 2010.
Weaver said Pawlenty has conferred with former GOP administration officials like ex-Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, and concluded that a possible cabinet position is “not that enticing” for a former governor.
Weaver also pushed back against a chorus of Washington pundits who speculated that Pawlenty’s move reflected a lack of faith in Romney’s chances against Obama, who has opened leads in almost all national and swing state polls.
“For those who say this is somehow the rats leaving the ship, that’s not what’s going on here at all,” Weaver said. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. These things don’t come along very often.”
Former Pawlenty aide Brian McClung said that as the former governor embarks on a career in the private sector, he is “taking off the table running for U.S. Senate or governor in 2014.”
Pawlenty’s exit from the public stage should be applauded. “It’s what the founders had in mind when our system was created,” he said. “Pundits and the chattering class often seem confounded when someone chooses to do what Gov. Pawlenty is doing, but it’s a good and healthy thing.”
Other GOP strategists noted that with Congress adjourning until the November elections, there are others who can step in as a Romney surrogate, a position Pawlenty agreed to give up to take his new job representing the banking and insurance industries, both major players in Washington.
“I know for a fact that Tim Pawlenty is as passionate about the GOP ticket as anybody in our party, but being a national campaign co-chair is a full time job without a paycheck, and, like the rest of us, he needs to make a living,” said Minneapolis attorney Andy Brehm, who was a staffer for former Sen. Norm Coleman.
The Romney campaign issued a statement calling Pawlenty a “dear friend,” and wishing him success in his new position.
“Mitt Romney is a truly good man and great leader,” Pawlenty said in a statement. “As the campaign moves into the home stretch, he has my full support and continued faith in his vision and his policies.”
Mary Pawlenty, libertarian leanings
Posted by: Rachel E. Stassen-Berger Updated: September 12, 2012 - 10:30 AMFormer Minnesota First Lady Mary Pawlenty said on radio-maven Tom Barnard’s podcast that she is “probably more moderate than people think” she would be, considering she went to Bethel College and based on her faith background.
On the podcast with former Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Mary Pawlenty said “there are points where we should compromise.” She added, “there are a few things about the Ron Paul people that make sense to me,” particularly the libertarian push for “wanting the government to go away.”
Tim Pawlenty said the pitch for smaller government is great, but Paul went too far when he said it was okay to legalize heroin and suggested that it is not in the United States’ interest to care if Iran has a nuclear weapon.
Mary Pawlenty’s response: “Dude, I was not completely defending Ron Paul’s positions, alright? I’m just saying there are a few things with the libertarians that I agree with. Of course, I don’t agree with Ron Paul on all that kind of stuff.”
(Tim Pawlenty also said on the podcast that his presidential campaign “only lasted 10 minutes,” during which they didn't raise enough money and they “botched the strategy.”)
If you're not already getting Morning Hot Dish political newsletter by email, it's easy and free to sign up. Go to StarTribune.com/membercenter, check the Politics newsletter box and save the change.
Pawlenty explains 'tattoo president' remark
Posted by: Kevin Diaz Updated: August 30, 2012 - 9:25 AM
He said the idea came from an encounter with Fox News’ Neil Cavuto, who pressed him during a recent appearance about his nondescript Minnesota Nice image.
“He was asking me questions about, I can’t remember now, but it was basically, ‘are you bland’ or something,” Pawlenty recalled. “And I jokingly said ‘if you push me, I’ll show you my tats.’ So that was the inspiration.”
inside the StarTribune
-
425 Portland Av. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55488
(612) 673-4000
- Company
- Subscriber Services
- Website
- Buy Ads
- Store
- Connect with Us
© 2013 StarTribune. All rights reserved.
StarTribune.com is powered by Limelight Networks
Newspaper Subscriptions
eEdition
RSS
Newsletters