Pawlenty in Ames: I walk the walk

Other White House contenders are all talk, GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlentysaid today during the Ames Straw Poll. The former Governor of Minnesota said while his opponents “will say, ‘I’m the one who will cut government spending, they’ll say, ‘I’m the one who will do health care reform the right way,’ and so on, just saying the words isn’t enough.”

Reminding the crowd at Hilton Coliseum that he was elected to the governorship in a traditionally blue state, Pawlenty said the Republican nominee will need to fight for voters outside of states that typically go red come election time, rather than sticking to safe territory.

“I stand before you today telling you I won’t just talk about it — I will get the job done,” he said.

The former Governor and opponent Congresswoman Michele Bachmann (R-Minn)traded barbs Thursday during the Fox News presidential debate, where Pawlenty told Bachmann “you’re killing us,” and said her Congressional accomplishments and record are “non-existent.”

Chants of “T-Paw!” were repeated throughout Pawlenty’s presentation, during which he was accompanied by his wife, Mary, a former district judge in Minnesota, and the couple’s two teen daughters.