As the Republican candidates to the White House come forward, following the withdrawal of Michael Huckabee and Mitch Daniels, the most serious runners are Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty. Pawlenty could awaken Polish Americans politically.
Many political commentators considered former Arkansas Governor Michael Huckabee had the best chance for victory in the run against Barack Obama. Although he lost in the last presidential elections to Senator John McCain (AZ), he also gained a lot of supporters.
With the excitement of Osama bin Laden's death soon to be over, if President Obama does not manage to enliven the economy and to radically reduce unemployment, he will surely lose the nation's support.
Mitch Daniels' decision this past Sunday to withdraw from the presidential run took everybody by surprise; he said he had a family situation. Indeed, his life is not lacking in turmoil. The Daniels feared that the nation's attention in the election campaign would focus on his divorce and subsequent remarriage to his ex-wife instead of politics. So they decided to save themselves and the family.
There is no major candidate on the Republican side of the election battlefield. The politically experienced Mitt Romney's huge weakness is the health insurance in his state of Massachusetts. For the conservative groups it is less important that the health system works and covers 100 percent of the population. They can't bear the fact that the health system in Romney's state resembles the health care reform implemented by President Obama. Besides, although it is not proper to talk about it in America, Mr. Romney is a Mormon, which disqualifies him in the eyes of a substantial part of the electorate.
If the GOP doesn't get a new star, the spotlight will fall on the extremely controversial, although exceptionally photogenic, former speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich; however, he is raising doubts even among the most ardent Republicans, like former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. There are also speculations about New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, Texas Governor Rick Perry, as well as former Florida Governor Jeb Bush as contenders; however, so far none of these politicians has expressed interest in running for the Presidential seat in 2012.
Within that context, Tim Pawlenty seems an increasingly strong candidate for the White House. Although the former governor of Minnesota is not well known beyond the borders of his own state, he has managed to secure the support of many wealthy donors. Additionally, he has a chance of getting Mr. Daniels' supporters since he has withdrawn from the race. Money is a great asset in every presidential election.
Tim Pawlenty, who has Polish roots, can also awaken Polonia's political ambitions. Most of our organizations do not have a clearly defined goal, but there is hope that the Republican's campaign may inspire them to become more active politically. If our community offers him broad support and he succeeds, then we will be able to demand that the needs important to the Polish-American community be met. Even if he doesn't win, intense engagement in his battle to the White House can still help us rise on the political arena.
