pawlsex051408
On the homepage
Nightlife
Out There
Table Talk
Music
Home | Politically Connected | State Politics
Pawlenty's blue remark has bloggers tickled pink
Speculation is rife whether Pawlenty's wisecrack about his sex life was a gaffe or a calculated political move.
Print this story
E-mail this story
Save to del.icio.us
Share on Facebook
Share on Digg
Gov. Tim Pawlenty is regularly involved in tense late-night negotiations -- and not only, it appears, during the frenzied final days of a legislative session.
A joking remark he made about his sex life has gone national, spreading through the blogosphere quicker than anything the potential vice presidential hopeful has said about global warming, property tax caps or health-care access funds.
During a fishing-opener interview on WCCO Radio on Friday, Pawlenty said this about First Lady Mary Pawlenty: "I have a wife who genuinely loves to fish. I mean, she will take the lead and ask me to go out fishing, and joyfully comes here. She loves football, she'll go to hockey games and, I jokingly say, 'Now, if I could only get her to have sex with me.'"
In the background, Mary Pawlenty quickly added, "Sorry -- my apologies for my husband."
Was it an unguarded slip, or a shrewd play for empathy from frustrated husbands coast to coast?
On the radio, Pawlenty was quick to repeat, "It's a joke, it's a joke." His spokesman Brian McClung said Tuesday that "nothing further" on the issue would be coming from either of the Pawlentys, adding only that "it was clearly said as a joke."
Pawlenty has found himself in a curious position as the parlor game of guessing McCain's running mate pick has heated up.
He was scheduled to seize a bit of the national spotlight today during a panel discussion at the National Press Club on the nation's educational crisis.
But he canceled because the legislative session is in its final week and "the governor wants to ensure that he is available for negotiations with legislative leaders," McClung said.
"Which means now we won't know if he would have been courted by the D.C. elite, like [Florida Gov.] Charlie Crist last week," a Politico blogger wrote. "Nor would we be able to ask about his sex life, either."
That was relatively tame compared with how several other several political blogs gleefully linked to Pawlenty's joke.
A blogger for the Atlantic cracked, "A bit bawdy for the GOP VP frontrunner? All I can say, Governor, is that the Naval Observatory can be an incredible aphrodisiac ..."
"Straight talk, Minnesota male-style," another wrote. "Typically, this would hurt a candidate for veep. But given McCain's sense of humor, he'll probably find it hilarious and like Pawlenty that much more."
By Tuesday afternoon, a Google search for "pawlenty wife have sex with me" turned up 31,000 hits.
Bob von Sternberg • 612-673-7184
- Top DFLer asks for time on WCCO radio
- Emotional Franken finally gets sworn in
- Board fines Entenza $500 for lobbyist contribution
- Coleman would cast long shadow in governor's race
- Al Franken serious, ready to work
- Pawlenty starts cutting budget to close $2.7 billion gap
- Marty Seifert announces campaign for governor
- Parents' pain helps change how police treat missing adults
- Senator Al Franken: Goodbye to the Class Clown
- Delano's Emmer plans run for governor
Jonas Brothers at the Target CenterCurrent state office holders
Governor: Tim Pawlenty
One of only a few prominent Republicans to win a competitive re-election contest in the Democratic sweep of 2006, Tim Pawlenty is widely seen as politically shrewd and naturally likable.
- Lt. Governor: Carol Molnau
- Secretary of State: Mark Ritchie
- Attorney General: Lori Swanson
- State Auditor: Rebecca Otto
Minnesota's political giants: Learn more about the men and women who have shaped Minnesota's political history.
  1000s of HomesListings, open houses, the hottest market news. Start and end your search for a new home here. |
Win one of two $50 gift certificates to Barbette.Vita.mn and Barbette present the Bastille Day Block Party at Barbette on Irving Avenue on July 12. The party features live music including Brooklyn-based Frenchie band Les Sans Culottes, locals Halloween Alaska, Romantica, Sims and more. |
Comment on this story | Read all 112 comments | Hide reader comments