Pawlenty Uses Facebook to Announce Presidential Exploratory Committee

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty released a video on Facebook Monday announcing he has formed a presidential exploratory committee.

In the two-minute video, Pawlenty says his experience as a Midwestern governor has prepared him for the job of commander in chief. He also makes numerous references to the founding fathers and Presidents Lincoln and Reagan. Click play to watch video:

"We the people of the United States will take back our government. This is our country," he says. "That's why today I am announcing the formation of an exploratory committee to run for president of the United States." The formation of an exploratory committee will allow Pawlenty to begin raising money and building the infrastructure needed to mount a campaign for the Republican nomination.


The move is certainly no surprise, as Pawlenty has written the obligatory pre-candidacy book, and has been a repeat visitor to Iowa, New Hampshire and other early primary/caucus states.

Nonetheless, he has failed to draw much of a following. According to a Gallup survey last month, he trailed six other possible candidates and was tied with Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels at 3 percent. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee led the way with a tepid 18 percent.

In his video, Pawlenty draws on his roots in St. Paul, an area that has weathered economic decline in recent decades.

"I grew up a few miles from here, and back then it was home to some of the world's largest stockyards and meatpacking plants, but when those plants shut down, so did a big part of the spirit and the soul of my hometown. At a young age I saw up close the face of challenge, the face of hardship, and the face of job loss," he says.

"Over the last year I've traveled to nearly every state in the country and I know many Americans are feeling that way today. I know that feeling, I lived it. But there is a brighter future for America. We know what we need to do, grow jobs, limit government spending, and tackle entitlements. "

A full transcript of the video is at MSNBC.com.

Pawlenty joins two other Republicans, former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain and former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer, in forming an exploratory committee.