Pawlenty takes first step toward 2012 bid

Gov. Tim Pawlenty has formed state-level political action committees in Iowa and New Hampshire, widely considered to be an indication of presidential aspirations in 2012.

The Des Moines Register reports Wednesday that Pawlenty, who has already announced he will not run for a third term as governor, filed paperwork to form the PAC with with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board, a move that will allow him to raise more money due to a lack of contributions limits in Iowa. Contributions to federal PACs are capped at $5,000.

“We filed these committees now because now is the time to start organizing on the grass-roots level for 2010,” Alex Conant, a Pawlenty spokesman, told The Des Moines Register on Tuesday. “The governor doesn’t know what he’s going to do when he’s done being governor. He’ll decide that early next year.”

Conant said it was too early to say whether Pawlenty would put staff on the ground in Iowa this year, but did not rule out what has become a common early step for political figures weighing presidential bids.

Mitt Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC-Iowa has several paid staffers already, and Mike Huckabee’s HuckPAC has donated to several local races. The Register points out that by mid-June four years ago, “four GOP would-be caucus contenders, including Romney, had paid staff in Iowa.”

The Democratic National Committee responded to the news by chiding Pawlenty for his out-of-state activities.

“It’s nice that Tim Pawlenty has found a way to help politicians from other states who can help his political ambitions,” said DNC press secretary Hari Sevugan in a statement. “Too bad he couldn’t do the same for the families of Minnesota who he was elected to serve with his draconian budget cuts. It looks like if you want Tim Pawlenty to work for you these days, you need to live in Iowa or New Hampshire, not Minnesota.”

In a poll released last week by The Register, 53 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers were “unsure” about Pawlenty. He has visited the state twice of late, speaking at a Republican Party of Iowa fundraiser in Des Moines last November and at an event sponsored by Iowans for Tax Relief in April.