New Majority Project

On its blog, the good folks at the National Taxpayers' Union have given Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty a bum rap on the tax issue. They label Pawlenty's record on taxes "a disaster." That is demonstrably wrong.

While many of us were frustrated with the governor's "health impact fee" of a few years back, he has been a stalwart protector of taxpayers in the face of large liberal majorities in the state House and Senate who have an insatiable appetite for raising taxes.

In the 2007-2008 legislative session, the Governor vetoed massive increases in personal and corporate taxes. His veto of a multi-billion dollar increase in the gas tax and other associated vehicle and local sales taxes was, unfortunately, overridden.

Additionally, the Governor appointed a Tax Reform Commission to look at fundamentally overhauling Minnesota's punitive and burdensome tax code.

Like any politician, especially one with hostile liberal majorities, Governor Pawlenty's record isn't perfect, but it is very solid. I will provide a more detailed analysis of the Pawlenty tax record, but didn't feel as though NTU's analysis should go unchallenged.