Of course, they weren’t really Palin’s purchases — and that’s another Minneapolis connection in the Times story. Jeff Larson, the locally-bred Republican consultant whose FLS Connect GOP phone-solicitation firm has been in the news again lately, fronted Palin the $130,000 for her clothes. (The Republican National Committee paid him back.)

The occasion for retelling the story of Palin’s Minneapolis shopping spree is her new book, in which Palin has her own version.

The Times interviews Lisa Kline, the designer who dressed Palin and the members of her family for the 2008 GOP convention. An excerpt:

Neiman Marcus opened for Ms. Kline and her assistant at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, she said, and the two split up and spent a rushed 90 minutes or so gathering what they needed. Ms. Palin and her family were not there; nor was anyone from the campaign. Instead, the two stylists relied on a couple of salesclerks and a store manager.

“There was no conversation. There was no chitchat. It was just, ‘We need two pairs of pants in size yadada,’ ” Ms. Kline said. The purchases were rung up, but Ms. Kline was not asked for payment of any kind.

“Apparently it had been prearranged,” she said. …

Ms. Kline said she does not recall who asked her to expand her styling to the entire Palin family or who set up the appointment at Neiman Marcus, which later became so controversial because it undermined the candidate’s image as a populist.

The Burberry brand that Palin favors has had a bad rap back in Britain as having become too populist:

During the 1970s, the brand became popular with the British football casual cult, leading to it to being associated with chavs, hooligans and members of football firms by the 1990s. The brand became something of a national joke, particularly when actress Danniella Westbrook was photographed with her young daughter wearing matching Burberry outfits. South Wales police ran a drive against anti-social behaviour under the name Operation Burberry and Burberry admitted that “Burberry is now synonymous with Chavs and thugs.”

Palin will make a return visit to Minnesota on her book tour, with a stop at the Mall of America on Dec. 7. (But don’t go there dressed like a chav in your Burberrys, or the security guards’ll be on you.)

Here’s the glimpse into an alternate political universe, courtesy FiveThirtyEight’s Tom Schaller:

The most compelling race may be in Minnesota, however, where Tim Pawlenty won narrowly four years ago and might be distracted by presidential politics. Losing re-election would scotch any White House ambitions he has, making him a ripe target for the Democratic Governors Association. And that made me think that maybe — just maybe — Sarah Palin knew what she was doing by getting herself safely out of the way of anti-incumbent fury that may dominate the 2010 cycle.

The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza shakes us out of that daydream:

Norm Coleman (R) isn’t expected to make a decision on the 2010 governor’s race until next year but a new Rasmussen poll suggests the former senator has plenty of time to make his decision. Coleman led the Republican field with 50 percent while state Rep. Marty Seifert at 11 percent was the only other potential candidate to break double digits. Coleman’s lead is almost entirely attributable to name identification gained from his time as mayor of St. Paul and his six years in the Senate but it does suggest that if he decides to run, he will be a clear favorite. On the Democratic side, former Sen. Mark Dayton and Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak each received 30 percent of the vote while none of the other candidates scored in double digits. Coleman would give Republicans a chance to hold this seat, which is being vacated by Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R) after two terms. But, if Coleman takes a pass this race looks extremely difficult for any other GOP candidate given Minnesota’s Democratic tilt.

The reason Palin talks like a Minnesotan — to the extent that she does — is that the part of Alaska where she grew up was populated by a 1935 migration of people from the Upper Midwest. Of more than 200 families who moved north from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan, the largest number (15) came from Minnesota’s St. Louis County.

The researchers from Madison compared Palin’s speech during the vice presidential debate last year to speech they sampled from two native Minnesotans: a man born in Austin in 1977 and a woman born in Minneapolis in 1978.

With some words, like “boat,” the male sounded “hyper-Minnesotan, whereas the female Minnesotan has a BOAT vowel closer to Sarah Palin’s.”

Yet for all the commonalities, the paper says, ”Sarah Palin’s dialect lacks certain features of contemporary Upper Midwestern English.”

On the one hand, there’s no mistaking a certain “Fargo” twang:

Palin shows clearly identifiable Upper Midwestern features in her discourse markers (you betcha, etc.) and in her phonology (‘final devoicing’ and some particulars of her vowel space).

Yet in Palin’s way of speaking, what seems Minnesotan may not be.

Perceptually, the ostensibly Upper Midwest features outweigh the Western features, even though they are not necessarily categorical or even high-frequency patterns (like final devoicing), nor identical to patterns found among speakers in Wisconsin or Minnesota today (vowel acoustics.)

Here are a few other tidbits from “Defining Dialect, Perceiving Dialect, and New Dialect Formation: Sarah Palin’s Speech” (pdf), which appears in the December issue of The Journal of English Linguistics.

Palin is 20 times more likely to say “heck” and 46 times more likely to say “darn” than the average English speaker.

With regards to “her ‘g-dropping’ [goin', takin', hurtin'],” the researchers say, “the impression left may be of pervasive use, but it is both limited and systematic.”

The paper features a diagram showing the precise sounds Palin’s mouth makes when she says the word “pack,” as in “Joe Six Pack” (remember him?).

In particular, Balz criticizes T-Paw for his awkward refusal to embrace Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe as a member in good standing of the GOP during a recent television appearance. He also dings Pawlenty for eagerly wading into the recent congressional contest in upstate New York and for criticizing President Obama’s address to students on the first day of school. The awkward attempt to reposition himself for a Republican primary reminds Balz of Mitt Romney’s (doomed) 2008 presidential campaign.

The real risk for Pawlenty, as Romney learned in his unsuccessful 2008 campaign, is losing his true voice and his authenticity. Romney spent so much time trying to reposition himself and picking narrow tactical fights with his rivals that the qualities that might have made him a more attractive candidate were lost in the smoke. But once a candidate starts down that road, it can be hard to pull back.

This year, Romney has generally kept a lower profile. The view among strategists is that Romney has been shrewd in staying out of these flare-ups and wise to try to focus on big-picture issues of national security and the economy when he raises his profile. Pawlenty, being less known nationally and looking to attract attention to himself, has been reluctant to stay quiet.

Last week, another Washington Post political reporter, Chris Cillizza, made similar criticisms of Pawlenty.

Talk of Palin in the White House opened the door for media discussion of Bachmann’s own presidential prospects, which otherwise might’ve seemed far-out.

In March, she disavowed interest in becoming leader of the free world, but a Fox News profile at the time envisioned her in the governor’s mansion or the U.S. Senate.

Then in August, World Net Daily asked Bachmann if she would “one day run for the presidency.” Her reply:

If I felt that’s what the Lord was calling me to do, I would do it. When I have sensed that the Lord is calling me to do something, I’ve said yes to it. But I will not seek a higher office if God is not calling me to do it. That’s really my standard.

In September, she told conservative radio host Mike Gallagher:

Also with women politicians, they want to make sure no women, no woman becomes president before a Democrat woman, and so they’re doing everything they can to, I think, sabotage women like Sarah Palin, perhaps women like myself, or similarly situated women, to make sure that we don’t have a prominent national voice.

CNN’s story today, days after her high-profile rally on the U.S. Capitol steps, relies on that statement from September to answer (in part) the question posed in its headline. But she doesn’t need to say it anymore because, as CNN tells it:

The overall scope of the outreach effort is unusual for a second-term member and has sparked speculation that Bachmann could be laying the foundation for higher office.

But Bachmann’s effort to stay in her current post will be one of the top 10 races (of any kind) to watch in 2010, according a new listing by Politico, where yesterday she drew mention as an exception to “The GOP’s women problem.”

But first things first. Below is the clip from the 2006 movie “Talledega Nights” that provided Pawlenty with one of his most commented-on gag lines, used to describe his wife. After calling the movie “goofy” and “silly,” Pawlenty set about recounting a scene in which Will Ferrell, as race car driver Ricky Bobby, gives a dinner-table blessing that includes thanks for this “red-hot, smoking wife.” (Note that Pawlenty resisted using Ferrell’s addendum to that description: that his wife is also a “stone-cold fox.”)

The Weekly Standard’s Daily Grind liked it: “I don’t immediately think of Tim Pawlenty as being cool with the pop-culture references, but quoting Ricky Bobby shows promise.”

The Des Moines Register’s Kathie Obradovich seems to fall in the “didn’t bring it” camp:

“… Pawlenty delivered a spirited performance … but it didn’t automatically scream ‘presidential candidate.’ … It’s safe to say Pawlenty is the first potential presidential candidate to come to Iowa and quote a Will Farrell [sic] movie. Pawlenty turned to ‘Talledega Nights’ when introducing his wife, Mary: ‘Thank you, Lord, for my red-hot, smokin’ wife.’ … I thought it was funny, but some might take potshots at that brand of humor. … He didn’t knock Iowa Republicans’ socks off, but he’ll likely find plenty willing to look him over the next time he ventures across the border.”

Obradovich also noted: “He attended a gathering at Des Moines businessman Doug Reichardt’s house before the GOP dinner and stayed until the bitter end of the evening event. (Believe me, people noticed.)”

That gibes with what Jason Hancock observed at the dinner itself, which he covered for the Minnesota Independent’s sister site, the Iowa Independent: Pawlenty stayed through the gubernatorial candidates’ speeches that followed his.

But Norwegianity notes that the Register didn’t include Pawlenty in its trio of pictured “heavy hitters” who visited Iowa over the weekend.

The Washington Post’s Chris Cillizza headlines a post this morning at The Fix this way: “Pawlenty’s national forays show need for polish.” But he’s talking about T-Paw’s dalliance in the New York State special congressional election, not the Iowa appearance.

But what Cillizza sees as a gaffe — Pawlenty’s dissing of Sen. Olympia Snowe — Kathryn Jean Lopez at the National Review’s The Corner views as possibly successful overture to Iowa conservatives: “At least as an Iowa strategy, I’m not sure that’s was [sic] a fumble.”

Iowa’s Democratic chairman, Michael Kiernan, attacked T-Paw’s boasts about not raising taxes, saying Pawlenty “has increased ‘fees’ by hundreds of millions of dollars while at the same time putting the state in a terrible economic bind.”

Powerline’s John Hinderaker concludes that “Pawlenty and Mitt Romney are far and away the Republicans’ best Presidential prospects for 2012.”

Pawlenty didn’t miss while hunting deer in northern Minnesota earlier in the day on Saturday, but the buck was only injured and got away. That supplied another gag in his Iowa speech about a “shoot-and-release” program for deer, but Ken Korczak of Kittson County wasn’t laughing: “Governor, if you don’t mind, a note from a lifetime northern Minnesotaner: Real men track and butcher their own deer.” But instead, Korczak surmises, “he needed to be in Iowa for a major speech to Republican activists.”

Before his trip to Iowa, Pawlenty had taken heat for endorsing the Conservative Party candidate over the Republican in Tuesday’s U.S. House district in New York. He then called moderate Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine “more liberal than most Republicans would like.”

Pawlenty seemed to be addressing that controversy, saying debate over things like the party platform are good, but once that’s complete Republicans must unite to “start the American comeback.”

Pawlenty then struck a chord for party unity, saying that there should be vigorous primary campaigns, but then everyone should get back on the same team in order to elect Republicans.

“We’re going to have our debates about what the platform will look like,” he said. “We’re going to have our primaries and caucuses. We’re going to go through that process, and it should be hard fought. But when those decisions are made, as a team we have to come around and support each other.”

This marks the second major Republican Party of Iowa fundraiser where a potential 2012 presidential candidate has made it a point to discuss creating an inclusive party. In June, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour told a crowd of GOP activists and elected officials that the only way back into the majority was to resist demands for ideological purity.

For most of his speech, Pawlenty struck a populist tone attacking federal bailouts for Wall Street companies and Detroit automakers. And on the night that U.S. House lawmakers approved health care reform legislation, Pawlenty repeatedly hit the Democratic reform efforts, saying they are proof that Democrats no longer care about working families.

“They have a party now, our competitors, that have embraced big government, big unions and big bailouts,” he said. “And they want to have the people believe that they work for the common person. The working person.”

During his successful presidential campaign, Barack Obama regularly asked if the crowd was “fired up and ready to go,” Pawlenty said

“Are you fired up and ready to fight back?” Pawlenty said. “Are you willing to be involved?”

He said Obama broke his campaign promise to seek bipartisan health care reform, instead deciding to push for a liberal bill, ignore Republican voices and continue the “dangerous leftward tilt” the president has pursued for the country.

“In his victory speech in Iowa after the caucuses, President Obama promised — he used the word promise — he was going to bring Republicans and Democrats together to pass needed health care reform,” Pawlenty said. “Now I ask you, are you sick and tired of Democrats trying to ram down this liberal monstrosity down our throat which is their health care reform plan?”

But the Republican Party can’t simply be critics, Pawlenty said. Republicans must also offer solutions, and he pointed to his record as governor of Minnesota as proof that GOP ideas work. Minnesota is a very liberal state, Pawlenty said, and he was still able to cut spending and taxes.

“If we can do it there, we can do it anywhere,” he said.

The federal government could learn from his experience in Minnesota. Instead of allowing the national deficit to continue to grow, government should begin to live within its means, Pawlenty said.

“The only thing growing faster than the national debt is [MSNBC host] Chris Matthews’ man-crush on Barack Obama,” he said.

This marks Pawlenty’s first trip to Iowa since he campaigned for Arizona Sen. John McCain last year, and many are speculating that the trip is another indication of his interest in seeking the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. He has already said he will not seek a third term as governor and last month he formed a political action committee called Freedom First, a typical first move for presidential aspirants.

Pawlenty’s choice of theme music, Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son,” deftly evoked his much-touted working-class roots with the line, “I ain’t no senator’s son.”

But considering he wants to convince people that he is the one they should pick as the GOP nominee, he could have done without the song’s repeated refrain of “It ain’t me, it ain’t me.”

Pawlenty advertised his youthfulness — relative to many other GOP presidential aspirants — by revealing his birth year (1960), saying he’ll be 49 soon.

But he dulled his youthful glow with a self-deprecating anecdote set at his “regular house” in Eagan: Pawlenty and his “red hot smoking wife” Mary are both standing in the bathroom, the governor lamenting his receding hairline and other signs of middle age — including “love handles flappin’ over the side of my belt.” Mary Pawlenty’s comment on his critical self-assessment, according to T-Paw: “There’s nothing wrong with your eyesight.”

Pawlenty’s speech offered a couple inadvertent glimpses into his status as a lame-duck state leader and not-yet presidential candidate. At one point he talked about the need to focus on “growing jobs in our state,” quickly amending that to “growing jobs in our country.” But he also admitted to having been on the road a lot, eating unhealthy junk food.

In Gov. Pawlenty’s most direct attempt to get a rise from the Iowans, he put a twist on President Obama’s call-and-response line, “Are you fired up and are you ready to go?”

First Pawlenty said Obama is trying to “take the United States to places it doesn’t want to go.” Then he offered his own version: “Are you fired up and are you ready to fight back?”

He interspersed that line with complaints like ”Are you tired of Democrats trying to ram this liberal monstrosity down our throats?” and gripes about bail-outs for Wall Street, big auto companies, and big insurance companies. But the Iowa ballroom’s response couldn’t match the roar Obama gets from crowds at packed stadiums like Target Center.

Still, Pawlenty said the frustrations Americans are feeling give Republicans “huge running room” and a “tremendous opportunity.”

He opened his keynote address to a GOP “Leadership for Iowa” event with the requisite shout-outs to state leaders. ”I don’t think [the health care reform bill] would have been delayed without you,” Pawlenty said to Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley.

Pawlenty held out hope that the health care bill that he called “terrible” and “miserable” might yet meet defeat.

Within three hours, the bill had passed the U.S. House of Representatives.

Minnesota Public Radio’s Polinaut has audio. C-SPAN has video.

Pawlenty unveiled the proposal at a state Capitol press conference Thursday morning.

Under his plan, the state’s general fund budget would be limited to the amount of revenue collected in the previous two-year cycle. The two-term Republican governor argued that such a stringent cap on spending is necessary because legislators have proven unable to contain spending. Since 1960, he pointed out, general fund budgets have increased by an average of 21 percent every two years.

“That is an amazing, startling, frightening number,” Pawlenty said. “It is unsustainable going forward.”

Such an amendment would need to be passed by the legislature and then approved by voters. Pawlenty wants the proposal to be on the ballot next year.

But it is unlikely to get a favorable reception from Democrats, who control both legislative bodies with substantial majorities. Pawlenty acknowledged that.

“I suspect they won’t like it,” he said of his DFL counterparts. “Anything that limits spending growth they won’t like.”

Democratic leaders insisted that they will give the proposal serious consideration. “I’m intrigued at learning more about it,” said Tom Bakk, chair of the Senate Taxes Committee and a candidate to take over Pawlenty’s job in 2011. “This will require some very thoughtful consideration.”

But Democrats also pointed out that Pawlenty has never proposed a budget that would have fit within the fiscal strictures he hopes to set for future administrations. In the current biennium, for instance, Pawlenty initially proposed a $34.4 billion general fund budget — more than $2 billion over revenue collections for the prior two years. In addition, the state is currently facing a $5–7 billion budget deficit.

“We’ve got a $5–7 billion iceberg in front of us and I think it would have been better if he would have proposed something of this significance earlier in his term,” said Senate Majority Leader Larry Pogemiller. “But let’s give it some thought now, on his way out the door.”

Indeed, Pawlenty is not running for re-election next year and is clearly eyeing a 2012 presidential bid. Burnishing his credentials as a fiscal conservative could help with that cause — even if it does nothing to solve Minnesota’s budget problems.

Many conservative commentators, from the Wall Street Journal editorial board to Americans for Tax Reform, hailed Pawlenty in June for unilaterally slashing $2.7 billion from Minnesota’s budget over Democratic protests.

The DFL party was quick to characterize Pawlenty’s proposed amendment as another ploy to bolster his political ambitions.

“If a budget cap is such a good idea, why did Gov. Pawlenty wait until he was nearly out the door before proposing it?” asked Brian Melendez, chairman of the DFL party, in a press release. “The answer is simple: so that he wouldn’t actually have to govern under it, because he has no plans to follow through with what is really just a political stunt aimed at boosting his national notoriety.”

Cillizza knocks Pawlenty for clumsily wading into the congressional race in upstate New York that was ultimately won by Democrat Bill Owens. He also criticizes the Republican governor for an appearance on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” show during which he suggested that U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine might not be sufficiently down with GOP orthodoxy to remain a member in good standing of the party. The upshot of these two events, according to Cillizza: Pawlenty appears to be too transparently pandering to conservative activists.

Even so, The Fix scribe is not willing to write off Pawlenty’s 2012 ambitions. “Pawlenty still has more than two years to grow into the role he is running for,” Cillizza notes. “And, now is the time to make mistakes — when only a few super-nerdy political junkies (yours truly very much included) and a handful of party activists are paying close attention.”