Aug 29, 2008 8:12 am US/Central
Pawlenty: 'I'm Not Going To Ohio Today'
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ―
Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty told WCCO Radio Friday morning that he was not going to Ohio today and a source told the Associated Press around 8 a.m. that Pawlenty had been notified he's not John McCain's pick for vice president.
Early Friday morning, the governor told WCCO Radio's Eric Eskola that he will be at the Minnesota State Fair Friday, doing his radio show.
"You're not going to be there so we can just say point-blank, you're not the nominee?" Eskola asked Pawlenty.
"All I can say is that I'm not going to be there and I plan on being at the State Fair and so you can draw your conclusions from that," Pawlenty said. "I just can't comment further at this time.
Speculation had been rampant that Pawlenty would be named John McCain's running mate at a rally in Ohio Friday. He has been on a short-list of possible running mate choices for McCain and Pawlenty fed that speculation Thursday when he abruptly canceled scheduled interviews with The Associated Press and other media and left Denver, where he had been part of a GOP response team to counter what was being said at the just-concluded Democratic nominating convention.
McCain has a rally scheduled for 11 a.m. in Dayton, Ohio to introduce his running mate.
There has also been no indication that often-named former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney was heading to Ohio. He spent Thursday courting donors in California.
All that raised the possibility that others, such as former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge or Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman, of Connecticut, could be named, or that McCain could choose a wild card candidate from any number of prospects that have been mentioned since he clinched the GOP nomination in March.
The Arizona senator has decided on his choice for vice president early Thursday but the campaign has given no hint on his selection that will be announced on his 72nd birthday.
Republicans kick off their national nominating convention next week in St. Paul, and McCain's campaign hopes the announcement of his running mate will stunt any momentum that Democratic rival Barack Obama might get from the just concluded Democratic National Convention.
McCain was mum on the subject Thursday as he and his wife, Cindy, boarded a plane in Phoenix bound for Dayton.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
