Those who think John McCain will buck expectations by choosing a non-white or non-male Republican for a running mate -- Condi Rice and Bobby Jindal's names are in the air -- should check out Jonathan Martin's piece on Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty. He's a longtime McCain endorser and the subject of what seems to be (at least from Martin's reporting) a serious whisper campaign to gauge reaction to his prospects as a V.P. nominee:Sara Taylor, former White House political director and a veteran of both Bush-Cheney campaigns, contacted this reporter to offer unsolicited observations on the governor."He's a conservative, rock-n-roll Republican and is counterintuitive to the party stereotype that we're old and rich,” says Taylor, who recalled visiting St. Paul and finding the governor jamming in his office to recording artist Bruce Springsteen. “He's young and blue-collar."Known as a hockey fanatic and the son of a truck driver, Minnesota politicians see the charismatic Pawlenty as having shifted to the right, particularly on economics, to advance his national ambitions. His fiscal priorities don't exactly signal concern for pocketbook issues: Pawlenty balanced Minnesota's budget while raising student fees at state colleges, and used tax dollars instead to fund a new baseball stadium for the Twins. In 2004, his health commissioner was forced to resign after propagating the medically false claim that abortion causes breast cancer.All in all, Pawlenty is exactly the sort of safe choice I would have guessed McCain would closely consider, especially in a potential match-up against Barack Obama: White, male, young, and a conservative with proven appeal to moderates.--Dana Goldstein
