Pawlenty: Palin "a remarkable leader... a teammate"

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty told CNN's John King Sunday that he doesn't consider 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin to be his competition:

The former Alaska governor is “a friend,” Pawlenty told King, “I don’t view her as somebody who’s a competitor for anything. I view her as a teammate.”

Pressed on his view of himself relative to Palin, Pawlenty reiterated, “I view her as a friend. And I think she’s somebody who has been a remarkable leader in Alaska under difficult circumstances. I don’t know what the future holds for her.”

Pawlenty also appeared to hold no ill will over Sen. John McCain’s reported decision to pick Gov. Palin over Gov. Pawlenty for the vice presidential nod on last year’s Republican ticket.

“I’m a huge fan of Sen. McCain. I think he made the choice he felt was right for not only his ticket but for the country in the circumstances of the time,” said Pawlenty. The Minnesota Republican added that he did not think McCain made a mistake in choosing Palin as his running mate.

Pawlenty appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" program hosted by King, who is the cable network's chief national correspondent.

- JP