Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-MN), a potential presidential candidate who is trying to elevate his profile (such as his recent action movie trailer-style Web video) is also stepping up his tough-guy rhetoric — calling President Obama “chicken” on entitlement spending.
In an appearance Monday on Fox & Friends, Pawlenty criticized Obama’s State of the Union address for not proposing clear solutions for Social Security’s fiscal situation, such as Pawlenty’s ideas of means-testing cost-of-living adjustments and raising the retirement age for future entrants. (As we’ve posted before, means-testing would be somewhat left-wing, as it would have the effect of redistributing wealth.)
“Most American people understand we got a problem. Those are reasonable solutions. You could rally people to that cause,” said Pawlenty. “But he didn’t even tee it up. He won’t even address it. You know he’s got all this soaring rhetoric, but the fact of the matter is he’s chicken to address the real issues.”
Gretchen Carlson asked Pawlenty toward the end of the interview whether his calling Obama a “chicken” was a sign of a “tougher Tim Pawlenty.”
“Don’t confuse being nice with being weak,” Pawlenty responded. “Ronald Reagan was a great example of that. You can be hopeful and optimistic and strong, but you also need to make sure that you — you know are willing to back it up.”
