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?

Pawlenty Returns to Iowa

It's T-Paw, II. Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, and likely 2012 presidential candidate (can I call him that yet?), is returning to Iowa in April. He will headline an event with the Iowans for Tax Relief. Four candidates for governor are also scheduled to appear. All 3 Repubs and Democratic former Des Moines school board member Jonathan Narcisse confirmed to be there. ITR said Governor Chet Culver's campaign never responded. Pawlenty is looking more and more like he is interested in Iowa (and running for president, of course).

Pawlenty last came to the metro for Republicans' Leadership for Iowa event November 7th at the Iowa State Fairgrounds. Although, his visit did get overshadowed a bit. The Republican candidates for governor also spoke that night and much of the attention focused on how former Governor Terry Branstad did in his debut (would it be re-debut?) before some Polk County Republicans. You might remember, I reported that weekend the reviews weren't all that impressive from him from the majority of people who talked to me about it.

Speaking of Governor Chet Culver... I first reported Wednesday that Culver's deputy campaign manager, Jesse Harris, was leaving the campaign to go work for Secretary of State Michael Mauro. It looks like I only had 1/2 of the departures though. Tom Beaumont of the Des Moines Register reports Grace Van Cleave, Culver's finance director, is also taking off. Culver's previous campaign manager, Andrew Roos, had already left the campaign.

This all happens as Culver deals with a recession, continuing downward poll numbers, talk that Democrats may not want him to run again and other talk that he could face a primary opponent (Narcisse? Someone else?)