I’ve been hard on former Minn. Gov. Tim Pawlenty, and he deserved it. His instincts and actions on ‘global warming’ were all wrong. And while he had backed away from it, I expected this was just a prelude to ‘pulling a Huckabee’, meaning change his position while denying he ever did. That he was just another aspiring politician who could not admit error and even like another candidate apparently willing to say absolutely anything no matter how bizarre just so long as he avoided admitting error, and thus that he was as bad as the rest and undeserving of consideration.

And I really can’t tell you how refreshingly pleased I am that he has just proved me wrong. That’s almost renewing, it seems so out of place in presidential politics. Good on you, Gov.

Of course, even Obama has said cap-n-trade is dead and even Newt read the polls well enough to change his mind. So except for the part about contrition — no small thing — this was a layup. The issue is which candidate, if any (Sarah Palin has come out swinging and on the nose but I don’t think she’s running), will say what has to be said about the ‘green jobs’ scandal, and its ethanol ancestry?

For now we will hope Sarah Palin herds the aspirants to the right position on that which is not politically resolved. Yet. But, Gov. Pawlenty, now that you’re on a roll, why not be a leader?