Minnesota Independent: News. Politics. Media. » Elliot Spitzer

Pawlenty named GOP “star” like Jindal … and possible john like Spitzer

Chris Steller — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:51:20 +0000

Photo: MN North Star

If Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s office still uses those “While You Were Out” notes, his Monday-morning stack would make interesting reading. During his weekend trip to Iraq, Pawlenty was called a GOP “star” like Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, and his name came up in speculation about which unnamed governor was reportedly also serviced by one of former New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer’s sex providers.

A hooker identified only as “Annie” told the New York Daily News that besides Spitzer (and Bernie Madoff) she counted another, unnamed governor among her customers. That led Gawker to speculate that it could be Pawlenty.

City Pages insists one detail — a “prominent” wife — nixes T-Paw from the list of possible candidates. But hey, Mary Pawlenty used to be a judge (before a brief stint at an arbitration outfit that Attorney General Lori Swanson just forced out of the arbitration business). Gov. Pawlenty also frequently deems his wife “hot,” although he once said he’d have it made “if I could only get her to have sex with me.”

Photo: US Army

More flattering was the pronouncement by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, himself a 2012 presidential prospect, that the Republican Party’s future lies with “stars” like Pawlenty and Jindal (not to mention Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who Barbour called “a bona fide energy expert”).

Pawlenty and Jindal haven’t been mentioned in the same breath as often since Jindal’s lackluster GOP response to President Obama’s State of the Union address. But Jindal is fixing to make his star rise again this week by blitzing op-ed pages and the cable-news talk show circuit.

Barbour made the comment at the annual meeting of the National Governors Association, which Pawlenty used to chair. This year, Pawlenty skipped the guvconfab (as well as his Friday radio show) for a trip to Iraq with three other governors.

It was planned as a morale-booster for the troops but turned solemn due to the deaths of three Minnesota National Guard military policemen – Spc. Daniel Paul Drevnick, 22, of Woodbury, Spc. David Wertish, 20, of Olivia, and Spc. Carlos E. Wilcox, 27, of Cottage Grove — just days before.

According to the Red Bull Report:

“Normally, at these town hall meetings, we talk about a lot of stuff,” said Pawlenty, “from the GI Bill to the Minnesota Vikings. But I want to limit my comments today to letting you know that I’m just so very sorry.”

When the time came for the MPs to ask questions of the governor, the room was silent for a moment. One Soldier stood up, who would ask the one and only question from the entire company. The Soldier was Staff Sgt. Blake Hayden from Woodbury, Minn., squad leader for the Military Police Company’s Quick Reaction Force and the direct supervisor of Drevnick, Wertish and Wilcox.

“Sir, are you going to be able to be at the funerals?”

The governor did not mince words with his response.

“Yes.”

Pawlenty has almost promised to travel to Puerto Rico next month as a special guest at a fundraiser for the Republican Governors Association. That’s an organization his fan Barbour now heads, after South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford resigned the post following his own sex scandal.

Spitzer scandal seen as setback for climate change reforms

Dan Haugen — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 12:44:36 +0000

Democratic New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer will be fighting for his political life following an allegation he met with a high-priced prostitute last month at a Washington, D.C., hotel. As the state’s attorney general, Spitzer earned a reputation for tough prosecution of Wall Street crimes. As governor, though, he’s been out front on climate change issues perhaps more than any other. David Sassoon, writing at SolveClimate.com, thinks the scandal has potential to slow the entire nation’s climate actions:

“Spitzer’s rendez-vous, the night before Valentine’s day s’il vous pla

New York Gov. Spitzer tied to prostitution

Jeff Fecke — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 19:51:12 +0000

Democratic New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer was recorded by federal agents arranging to purchase sex from a prostitution ring, according to a report by the New York Times.

Spitzer allegedly arranged to have a prostitute flown from New York City to Washington, D.C. Spitzer was scheduled to testify before Congress the following day.

Spitzer could face serious repercussions from the act; if charged, Spitzer could face federal charges under the Mann Act, which outlaws transporting people between states for the purposes of prostitution.

In a brief statement, Spitzer did not indicate that he would resign, nor whether he could be indicted, but he admitted that “I have acted in a way that violates my obligations to my family,” and said his conduct “violates my, or any, sense of right and wrong.”

The revelations could do serious damage to the career of Spitzer, 47, who came to prominence as a reform-minded state Attorney General. Spitzer had been touted by some as a potential future presidential candidate or cabinet secretary. Whether he will finish the week as governor is now an open question.