Tim Pawlenty and I live in two very different Minnesotas. I sensed that during his eight years as governor, but now, having read his new book, "Courage to Stand An American Story," I clearly see that while we may live in the same state, our worldviews could not be farther apart. Governor Pawlenty describes a relatively hardscrabble life growing up near the stockyards of South St. Paul. He talks about his Polish grandparents and how they never learned to drive because a streetcar on Concord Street made transportation in their neighborhood "about as convenient as could be." He talks about the awful toll cancer has taken on his family including the early deaths of an aunt and his mother – reminding the reader that early detection of cancer in the 1960s was not as common as it is today. And right there, in the book's very first chapters, our worldviews begin to diverge. Given the importance of the streetcar to his grandparents' lives, I wondered why the former governor did not embrace modern public works projects that would have improved the infrastructure of Minnesota while providing greater opportunity and convenience for its residents – people like his grandparents. Governor Pawlenty is correct in implying there have been significant strides made in the detection, treatment and cure of cancer since the deaths of his family members, but where does that innovation come from? There is no acknowledgment in his book that perhaps public funds used for research and treatment of disease is at least partially responsible for advances in diagnostics and care. Tim Pawlenty was the first person in his family to attend college. Following his undergraduate days at the University of Minnesota in the Twin Cities, Pawlenty continued on at the U of M where he received his law degree. In high school and throughout college, Pawlenty worked in the produce department at Applebaum's grocery store. His father contributed to the youngest son's education. What Pawlenty doesn't mention, however, is did he receive financial aid or benefit from any student loan program? Perhaps he didn't and bully for him if he was able to graduate on a "pull yourself up by your bootstrap" mentality. But missing from the chapter on Pawlenty's education was any mention of the programs that allows families to send members to Minnesota's land grant university to receive an education. A recurring theme in "Courage to Stand" is that Democrats had been overspending in Minnesota for over 40 years. "Minnesota," the former governor writes, "had been led astray by liberal policies" creating a terrible environment for business in the state. Yet, Pawlenty reminds us that Minnesota is home to more Fortune 500 companies, per capita, than any other state. Why do all of these companies remain in Minnesota when they are at such a disadvantage because of the tax-and-spend liberals? Could it be that the workforce actually likes living in a state that, until recently, was committed to improving the quality of life for all Minnesotans? "Courage to Stand," in words and pictures, presents Tim Pawlenty's bona fides as a God-loving, Ronald Reagan-admiring, family man. Having never served in the military, he paints himself as a "wartime Governor" by citing his role as Commander in Chief of the Minnesota National Guard. Pawlenty insists that he never raised taxes by continuing to refer to a 75-cent increase on cigarettes as a "health impact fee." Somehow, he even finds an opportunity to go on record as having supported reinstating the death penalty in Minnesota. Tim Pawlenty's Minnesota is unrecognizable to me. What, I wonder, would Tim Pawlenty's United States look like?