Mitt Romney Will Pick Tim Pawlenty, but Shouldn’t

Say what you will about his politics, Romney is at least conservative in his temperament. One of his biggest strengths throughout the campaign has been his ability to avoid a misstep and to walk the carefully charted path to the White House. Romney makes calculated decisions and I think his penchant for avoiding mistakes far outweighs his desire to make a splash.

With that temperament in mind, I think it's fairly easy to say that Romney will choose Tim Pawlenty to be his Vice Presidential running mate. Pawlenty has spent a lot of time on the campaign trail for Romney and adds a Midwest (Minnesota) contrast to Romney's New England roots . Pawlenty also has the benefit of having been elected to a statewide executive position (governor) and having a strong record of spending reduction without raising taxes. On Religion, Pawlenty was raised Roman Catholic and converted to evangelical Christianity later in life and many see this as a positive addition to Romney's Mormonism. With all of that said, Pawlenty like Romney isn't one to give stirring speeches or draw attention simply by his presence. In short, Pawlenty undoubtedly has the ability to walk lock-step with the campaign and stay on message.

Many of the VP nominees touted by the so called Republican "kingmakers" are much better choices than Pawlenty. Frankly, Romney doesn't need to "play it safe" with his VP pick (just look at loose-lipped Biden). I think Chris Christie, Bobby Jindal (my personal choice for President by the way) and Marco Rubio would all do much more to help the campaign than hurt it. Christie offers a no-holds-barred way of communicating that often shocks audiences and leaves them clapping. Jindal offers the dual appeal of being a "first" (Indian-American) and being a truly excellent statewide leader (governor of Louisiana) as well as a legislator in the House of Representatives. Rubio offers the freshest perspective as he's young enough to still not have paid off his student loans. He also offers a crossing point for both Republicans and Latin-Americans and neccessitates a conversation that both groups desperately need to have. Alas, I think it's likely that all of these men will be passed up . . . but who knows, maybe Romney will read this and change his mind.