Pawlenty endorses Toomey, but would Toomey endorse Pawlenty?

Among the Republican candidates endorsed by Gov. Tim Pawlenty and his Freedom First PAC on Wednesday was former Rep. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania, who is looking to take on Republican-turned-Democrat Sen. Arlen Specter in November. But when Pawlenty was a front-runner to be Sen. John McCain’s running mate, Toomey, then head of the conservative Club for Growth, didn’t give Pawlenty a very favorable review.

The Hill wrote in June 2008:

The Club for Growth has taken note of the cigarette fee, as well as Pawlenty’s signing of a minimum wage increase, a statewide smoking ban and environmental regulations. He vetoed another minimum wage increase just recently. “Gov. Pawlenty’s record is not as a solidly free-market and limited-government” as some other candidates’, said the group’s president, former Rep. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.).

Other candidates endorsed by Pawlenty, according to an email released by his PAC: Gov. John Hoeven for U.S. Senate in North Dakota, Tim Burns for Congress in Pennsylvania’s 12th district, Charles Djou for Congress in Hawaii’s 1st district, Bob Dold for Congress in Illinois’ 10th district, Sean Duffy for Congress in Wisconsin’s 7th district and Pat Meehan for Congress in Pennsylvania’s 7th district.