Bob CollinsTwo months ago, Gov. Tim Pawlenty held the door wide open for reporters to examine his religious views and the extent to which they influence his decisions on state policy, such as his plan to cut health care for the poor and mentally ill.
He did so by declaring to a conservative convention in Washington, “God’s in charge. There are some people who say ‘Pawlenty, don’t bring that up. Its politically incorrect.’ Hogwash! …I say to those naysayers that try to crowd out God from the discussion, if it’s good enough for the founding fathers it’s good enough for us.”
At the time, I wrote that reporters should use the opportunity to quiz Pawlenty about his religion. His spokesman later wrote on Twitter that none did, then turned aside my request to ask the questions of the governor.
From the sound of a piece in the National Journal today, others aren’t having any better luck at getting the gov to open up about his religion. A post — “Evangelicals for T-Paw?” tries to make a case that presidential candidate Pawlenty could be the next Mike Huckabee, but it falls woefully short. The article notes only that Pawlenty is an evangelical Christian by marriage, but does nothing to indicate what that means to the governor or what principles he brings to the “discussion.”
Until he sits for a discussion on religion, there’ll always be a difference on the question of evangelical Christianity between Tim Pawlenty and Mike Huckabee.
(h/t: Hart Van Denburg, City Pages)
