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Gov. Tim
Pawlenty
Officially
Announces
Campaign for
President
Governor says
now is "A Time
for Truth"
DES MOINES -
Gov. Tim
Pawlenty
announced today
that he is
running for
President,
telling voters
at a town hall
event in Des
Moines, Iowa
that "it's time
for new
leadership, with
a new approach."
"The time has
come for
America’s
president – and
anyone who wants
to be president
– to look you in
the eye and tell
you the truth,"
Gov. Pawlenty
said. "If we
don’t change
directions in
2012, if we do
not move quickly
and decisively,
if we are not
willing to chip
in to sacrifice
some of our own
comfort and
convenience for
the lives and
liberties of our
children, it may
be too late."
Gov. Pawlenty's
official
announcement
kicks off a
week-long,
multi-state tour
devoted to
telling
Americans the
truth about the
challenges
facing America,
and laying out
specific ideas
for getting the
country back on
track. Pawlenty
will host a
Facebook town
hall on Tuesday
and deliver
remarks at the
Cato Institute
on Wednesday. He
will travel to
New Hampshire
and New York on
Thursday and
Friday.
"Tomorrow I’m
going to
Florida, to look
both young
people and
seniors in the
eye and tell
them the truth,
that our
entitlement
programs are on
an unsustainable
path. And that
inaction is no
longer an
option,"
Pawlenty said in
Des Moines.
"Conventional
wisdom says you
can’t talk about
ethanol in Iowa
or Social
Security in
Florida or
financial reform
on Wall Street.
But someone has
to say it.
Someone has to
finally stand up
and level with
the American
people. Someone
has to lead."
With the nation
facing difficult
challenges,
Governor
Pawlenty pointed
to his record in
Minnesota as
evidence that
conservative
leadership can
lead to a
brighter future.
"In Minnesota, I
cut taxes, cut
spending,
instituted
health care
choice and
performance pay
for teachers,
reformed our
union benefits,
and appointed
constitutional
conservatives to
the Supreme
Court," Governor
Pawlenty said.
"The problems we
face as a nation
are severe. But
if we could move
Minnesota in a
common sense,
conservative
direction, we
can do it
anywhere -- even
in Washington
D.C."
Governor
Pawlenty's
announcement
comes less than
five months
after he
completed his
second term as
Governor of
Minnesota. First
elected governor
in 2002,
Governor
Pawlenty
promised to
balance budgets
without raising
taxes — a
promise he kept.
Instead, he was
honest with
voters about the
choices
necessary to
restrain
out-of-control
spending. It
wasn't easy: His
budget fights
led to the first
government
shutdown in
Minnesota's
history, a
44-day transit
strike, and a
record number of
vetoes and
budget
unallotments.
His success
earned him an A
grade in fiscal
responsibility
from the Cato
Institute — one
of only four
governors to
receive the
libertarian
group's highest
ranking.
One of five
children,
Pawlenty grew up
near the
stockyards of
South St. Paul.
His father was a
truck driver and
his mother
passed away when
he was young.
Pawlenty worked
while attending
the University
of Minnesota,
becoming the
first in his
family to
graduate from
college. He went
on to earn his
law degree and
become a
criminal
prosecutor
before being
elected to the
Eagan City
Council in 1989,
and the
Minnesota state
House in 1992.
Tim Pawlenty has
been married for
over 20 years to
his wife, Mary,
a former
district judge.
The Pawlentys
have two teenage
daughters, Anna
and Mara, and
attend Wooddale
Church in Eden
Prairie,
Minnesota.
Excerpts of
Governor
Pawlenty’s
Announcement
Address
"I'm Tim
Pawlenty, and
I'm running for
President of the
United States.
We live in the
greatest country
the world has
ever known. But,
as we all know,
America is in
big trouble, and
it won't get
fixed if we keep
going down the
same path. If we
want a new and
better
direction, we
need a new and
better
President."
"President
Obama's policies
have failed. But
more than that,
he won't even
tell us the
truth about what
it's really
going to take to
get out of the
mess we're in. …
I'm going to
take a different
approach. I am
going to tell
you the truth."
"We've tried
Barack Obama's
way -- and his
way has failed.
Three years into
his term, we're
no longer just
running out of
money. We're
running out of
time. It's time
for new
leadership. It's
time for a new
approach. And,
it's time for
America's
president - and
anyone who wants
to be president
- to look you in
the eye and tell
you the truth."
"The changes
history is
calling on
America to make
today cannot be
shouldered only
by people richer
than us, or
poorer than us -
but by us, too.
Politicians are
often afraid
that if they're
too honest, they
might lose an
election. I'm
afraid that in
2012, if we're
not honest
enough, we may
lose our
country. If we
want to grow our
economy, we need
to shrink our
government. If
we want to
create jobs, we
need to
encourage job
creators. If we
want our
children to be
free to pursue
their dreams, we
can't shackle
them with our
debts. This is a
time for truth."
"No president
deserves to win
an election by
dividing the
American people
- picking
winners and
losers,
protecting his
own party's
spending and
cutting only the
other guys';
pitting classes,
and ethnicities,
and generations
against each
other. The truth
is, we're all in
this together.
So we need to
work to get out
of this mess
together. I'll
unite our party
and unite our
nation, because
to solve a
fourteen-trillion-dollar
problem, we're
going to need
three hundred
million people."
"In Minnesota
and in
Washington, the
issues were the
same: taxes,
spending, health
care, unions,
and the courts.
But in
Washington,
Barack Obama has
consistently
stood for higher
taxes, more
spending, more
government, more
powerful special
interests, and
less individual
freedom. In
Minnesota, I cut
taxes, cut
spending,
instituted
health care
choice and
performance pay
for teachers,
reformed our
union benefits,
and appointed
constitutional
conservatives to
the Supreme
Court. That is
how you lead a
liberal state in
a conservative
direction."
Solutions
Dear Friend,
Today in Iowa, I
announced that
I'm running for
President of the
United States of
America.
Watch the
announcement
video and read
my op-ed in the
USA today.
For too many
years,
politicians have
made empty
promises. So
today in Iowa I
didn’t promise
that we can
eliminate a 14
trillion dollar
debt, create
jobs for 10
million people,
restructure
social security
and healthcare,
overhaul an
education system
that fails 40%
of our children
– all without
any real
sacrifice, or
tough decisions.
And I didn’t
promise a freer,
happier, more
prosperous
America that
requires you to
do nothing but
vote for me.
Instead, I just
told the truth.
The truth is:
our country’s in
trouble.
We have far too
much debt, too
much government
spending, and
too few jobs.
We need a
President who
understands that
our problems are
deep, and that
happy talk won’t
fix them. We
need a President
who has the
courage to face
them. President
Obama does not.
I do.
Please join me
on this campaign
around the
country in the
days and weeks
ahead. You won’t
hear empty
promises. You
will hear a lot
of solutions.
Show your
support by
donating today
to help us
defeat President
Obama.
Sincerely,
Tim Pawlenty
A Time For Truth
Dear Friend,
I wanted you to
be among the
first to know
that tomorrow, I
will be in Iowa
to announce that
I’m running for
President of the
United States of
America. I hope
you’ll take a
moment to watch
this video
previewing
tomorrow's
announcement:
We need a
President who
will tell the
American people
the truth about
the severe
challenges
facing our
nation and how
we can get
America back on
track. President
Obama won't do
that. I will.
After the
announcement in
Iowa, I'm going
to Florida on
Tuesday to host
a special
Facebook
Townhall to talk
about some of
the specific
things we must
do to solve our
nation's fiscal
mess. I hope
you'll join me
in this
important online
discussion by
clicking here to
RSVP.
Together, we
will change our
country, and
this time it’ll
be for the
better.
Sincerely,
Tim Pawlenty
P.S. – To defeat
President Obama
and save our
country, we're
going to need
all the help we
can get. Please
contribute today
to get our
country back on
track.
Source: Tim
Pawlenty 2012
Exploratory
Committee
Website |
