Tim Pawlenty: Liar Extraordinaire

Tim Pawlenty, Republican governor of Minnesota, is a liar. He signed a "no new taxes" pledge in 2002 to secure his party's endorsement and proceeded to break that promise by imposing a $.75-per pack "health impact fee" on cigarettes. Most recently, he signed a new bill that increases the sales tax in Hennepin County to pay for an outdoor baseball stadium.

Pawlenty will never admit it, but he knows he's a liar. And he knows that his "conservative" base knows it, though they'll never let on that they know. What's more, he knows that they'll support him even though they know, because they know that all politicians lie.

He also knows that since Republican voters are just as gullible as their Democratic counterparts, all he has to do is refuse to apologize for lying—that would only draw the attention of those who don't already know—while at the same time making it appear that he won't do it again. This will be his key strategy in seeking reelection.

On May 31, in a preemptive publicity strike, Gov. Pawlenty said, "I'm not going to sign any pledge for any special interest group for any reason." I guess when you know you can't stand on principle, the best course of action is not to have any principles at all.

But deep down, everyone still knows that he's a liar. He's a politician, after all. Lying is in his nature.