Pawlenty Reveals 2012 Finance Team
Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty is unveiling his national finance team Monday as he prepares to kick off a second-quarter fundraising effort to establish his nascent presidential campaign as a major player in the race for the GOP nomination.
Pawlenty, who only announced his White House exploratory committee one week ago, spent the first three months of 2011 raising “seed” money to enable the launch of a campaign operation that will be headquartered in Minneapolis. The former two-term governor’s finance team is 16 strong. It includes many well-known fundraisers from around the country and a woman who worked in the 2008 cycle for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney (R).
“The governor’s advisers said that they would ask major donors to hold off making contributions until April. We only raised a little seed money in March; the fundraising effort will begin in earnest in April,” said a Republican source familiar with Pawlenty’s operation. “In preparation for the major-donor fundraising efforts in the second quarter, this morning Gov. Pawlenty’s exploratory leadership will announce his new finance consultants on a call with major supporters.”
Pawlenty’s finance team features GOP fundraisers based in key states that tend to be cash cows for Republican candidates, even though they might not be rich in votes. The team, also heavy on national presidential campaign experience, includes:
• Brian Haley, national finance director
Haley recently served as national finance director of Freedom First, Pawlenty’s political action committee. Prior to this, he held a similar position at Country First PAC, which was led by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and McCain’s 2010 re-election campaign. Haley served as the deputy national finance director for McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign.
• Katie McBreen, deputy national finance director
McBreen spent the past two years as the finance director for the 2010 Senate race of now-Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.). She previously worked for Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign. Romney is likely to run again next year.
• Trisha Hamm, Minnesota finance director
Hamm served as finance coordinator and then political director on the Pawlenty for Governor campaign and was the Minnesota finance director for Freedom First PAC.
• Chrissy Scherer, associate finance director
Scherer recently served as the associate finance director for the 2010 Senate campaign of now-Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.).
• Andrea Evans, Arizona finance consultant
Evans’ past and current clients include 2010 California Senate candidate Carly Fiorina (R) and McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign.
• Paige Lance Hahn, senior finance consultant for the Mid-Atlantic region
Hahn serves as president of Arlington, Va.-based Hahn Group Inc., a fundraising firm that she founded. She recently advised Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell (R) and served as development director for American Solutions, a grass-roots organization founded by former Speaker Newt Gingrich (Ga.), another likely GOP presidential candidate.
• Ann Herberger, senior finance consultant for national outreach
Herberger is the president of the Florida-based Woods Herberger Group Inc., a fundraising consulting business whose client list has included the Republican National Committee, the Republican Party of Florida, the Republican Governors Association and the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Herberger has also advised Bush/Cheney 2000 and 2004, as well as Romney, McCain, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R).
• Pam Kinsey, senior finance consultant for Midwestern states
Most recently she served as the Midwest consultant for the McCain campaign and the National Republican Congressional Committee.
• Paige Marriott, senior finance consultant for national outreach
Marriott served as the national finance director for Fiorina’s 2010 Senate campaign and was the Western states finance director for McCain’s 2008 presidential bid.
• Alison McIntosh, senior finance consultant for Texas
Her most notable past or present clients include McCain, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), NRSC Chairman John Cornyn (Texas), NRCC Chairman Pete Sessions (Texas), Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, the NRSC, the NRCC, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott.
• Rick Nelson, finance consultant for Minnesota and national outreach
• Gretchen Picotte, senior finance consultant for Florida
• The Starboard Group, finance consultants for Colorado
• Cassandra Vandenberg, senior finance consultant for California
• Shanna Woodbury, finance consultant for Minnesota and national outreach
• Sue Walden, finance consultant for Texas