Pawlenty and Pataki

TPaw and GeorgePa (doesn't quite have the same ring to it, does it?) are both headed to the Des Moines metro in the next few days. Is it an early 2012 Iowa caucus match up? Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty headlines the Iowans for Tax Relief's Iowa Taxpayers Day event Saturday afternoon in Urbandale. That event could be a fight for the headlines. Not only will TPaw be there, so will 5 men who want to be Iowa's next governor: Republicans' Terry Branstad, Bob Vander Plaats and Rod Roberts, along with Independent Jonathan Narcisse and Libertarian Eric Cooper (the Iowa State professor not the Major League Baseball umpire from Ankeny). That will be a lot of people trying to make it into the news cycle for Saturday night/Sunday morning. Will TPaw push out everyone since he's a possible presidential contender for 2012? Will one of the Republican candidates for governor edge his way in? Is there enough room for more than one major story out of this event? Stay tuned.

Former New York Governor George Pataki comes to Des Moines on Tuesday. I think it's his first trip here since he came last April as part of the American Future Fund speakers' series at Drake University. USA Today has a backgrounder on Pataki's new project. He is working with a group called Revere America. It's a 501 (c) 4 group that aims to get 1 million signatures to repeal President Obama's new health care law. The group has an ad that will run in Iowa. It's supposed to be Paul Revere riding his horse.

Of course, any visit to Iowa, the home of the first-in-the-nation caucus gets people wondering if Pataki will again consider running for president. What do you think?