COUNT ONE IN FOR 2012 - AT 6:23 P.M. ET:  The Republican governor of Minnesota has made a political move with national implications, as the Washington Post reports:

Update, 3:15 p.m.: Gov. Tim Pawlenty formalized his decision not to seek a third term in 2010 moments ago even as he acknowledged: "I still have a lot of ideas and energy left."

In response to suggestions from Democrats that he was leaving because he could not win a third term, Pawlenty insisted he "could have and would have" won in 2010, rattling off a series of recent polls showing his electoral strength.

Pawlenty did not directly address questions about whether he would run for president in 2012 but did note that he was "not ruling anything in or out" in regards a national bid.

COMMENT:  Pawlenty is an attractive, intelligent guy who handles himself well in debate.  If present trends continue, any GOP candidate will have a hard time in 2012, but present trends might not continue.  Pawlenty would be a welcome addition to the field.  By declining to run for a third time, he clears his calendar and avoids a political battle in which he would be targeted by the Democratic National Committee, hoping to knock him off.  The 2012 race has begun.

June 2, 2009