Minnesota Gov. Pawlenty pulls out of Southern GOP event, opts to attend troop return instead

Minn.’s Pawlenty pulls out of Southern GOP event

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has withdrawn from a major Republican gathering in New Orleans next month to attend a welcome-home ceremony for soldiers returning from Iraq.

Pawlenty canceled his planned April 10 trip to the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, billed as “the most prominent GOP gathering prior to the next national convention.”

A recognition ceremony for the Minnesota National Guard’s 34th Red Bull Infantry Division is set for the same day in Minneapolis.

Alex Conant, a spokesman for Pawlenty’s national fundraising organization, said Wednesday that the governor decided that “recognizing the troops is way more important than politics.”

Pawlenty is due to appear at an April 9 Minnesota event featuring possible 2012 rival Mitt Romney.