Politics

Minnesota GOP chair wants Pawlenty to consider run for U.S. Senate

Alex Pappas Political Reporter
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DES MOINES, Iowa — The chairman of the Republican Party in Minnesota wants Tim Pawlenty, who dropped out the Republican race for president on Sunday, to consider running for the U.S. Senate in 2012. (RELATED: Pawlenty exits presidential race)

Minnesota Republican Party Chairman Tony Sutton first broached the idea of recruiting Pawlenty to challenge Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar during an interview Sunday with the state’s WCCO-TV.

In a subsequent phone interview with The Daily Caller, Sutton said he plans to reach out to Pawlenty about a possible bid “after things cool off, maybe later in the week.”

“I think he’d make a heck of a candidate,” Sutton said.

“I’m sure right now, he’s probably not thinking about these kind of things,” the chairman said. “But you know a week or two, or a month from now, you know, the world could look a lot different. Hopefully, he’ll at least consider it.”

A spokesman for Pawlenty could not immediately be reached for comment.