(August 6, 2008 - Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images North America)

In a Redstate exclusive yesterday, Minnesota Governor, Tim Pawlenty, endorsed Conservative candidate Doug Hoffman in the 23rd District Race in New York.  While many saw Palin’s endorsement as the Holy Grail – this one actually means something more than headlines.  Palin is a somebody that nobody that matters begins to take cues from.  Pawlenty on the other hand is considered among the legitimate favorites to claim the Republican presidential nomination in 2012 if Palin’s star-power doesn’t overwhelm the rational side of the Republican base.

This endorsement is huge for a variety of reasons, but most notably because he is the first sitting Republican governor to do so.  Former public officials like Fred Thompson or Dick Armey gave a great deal of credibility to the campaign with their support, but a sitting governor far removed from the debate is a big boost to a campaign fighting to claim the seat as a third party.

I will say that I am less than pleased with the timing of this endorsement because it has taken so long to come, but I couldn’t be more pleased for its arrival yesterday as it will hopefully steal some of the spotlight from Palin’s endorsement last week.  It could easily be seen as a calculated move to react to Palin’s throwing her hat in the ring; and I will make no effort to call it otherwise; but I am mighty happy that he calculated that it was time to weigh in and I am sure that the Hoffman camp is as well.

In a statement sent to Redstate, Pawlenty said…

Tags: conservative, Dede Scozzafava, dick armey, doug hoffman, election, endorsement, fred thompson, governor Tim pawlenty, Minnesota, new york, ny23, pawlenty, REPUBLICAN, Sarah Palin, special election

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 27th, 2009 at 3:38 am and is filed under REPUBLICAN. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.