Pawlenty Good

It seems pretty certain that Tim Pawlenty will be the choice for McCain's running mate. On one level this will be great news, as it will mean Lieberman and Romney, both of whom would have been a disaster, will have been passed over.

Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, taking his turn in Denver today to bash Democratic nominee Barack Obama, hammered home the Republican message that the staging of Obama's acceptance speech reveals his arrogance and vanity.

I have been hoping, however, for a game changer. A Condi Rice, Sarah Palin or some other game changer - a woman would be great - would have put team Obama into a fresh tailspin.

The backdrop for the stage at Invesco Field features faux-Greek columns made of plywood. Republicans are dubbing it the "Temple of Obama," and Pawlenty, believed to be among the finalists for Republican John McCain's running mate, piled on.

One of the difficulties for McCain in picking a VP is the experience factor. Condi has no electoral experience, and Palin is in her first term as Governor of Alaska.

"It looks like they are getting ready for the emperor to arrive," Pawlenty said on Fox News Network. "The facade is metaphor for production purposes, but there’s not much behind it. It’s the perfect metaphor for Barack Obama’s readiness to be president of the United States."

With McCain's advanced years, his VP will face experience scrutiny that's probably more rigorous than Barack.

On ABC, Pawlenty said, "This Roman-like facade, a facade with Roman columns, is a perfect metaphor or icon for the point that it's an interesting production, but behind it there's not much there."

But Pawlenty is in his second term as Governor of Minnesota, and at age 47 (same as Obama) is just about old enough for a VP.

He added, "My goodness, it's amazing that we're three days into the Democratic convention and 60 or so days from the actual election and they're still trying to plead with the American people and convince us that Barack Obama is ready to be president. The fact of the matter, he is not."

While not a game changer, Pawlenty is plenty good enough. A fresh face, a popular governor, and someone who compensates well for McCain's age. Not only that, he adds executive experience. Nice to have a VP who is more qualified than the Democrats man at the top of the ticket.