Looks like someone took those complaints of being "too boring" a little too seriously. Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, who has been presumably prodded by his dismal ratings in 2012 Republican presidential candidate polls to find himself a personality, tried to make a joke in his speech at CPAC earlier today. About Tiger Woods. More specifically, praising his wife Elin Nordegren for smashing the back of his SUV to pieces, and labeling her a role model for conservatives to follow in their approach to big government. Since it's CPAC, the crowd burst into an uproarious fit of laughter and applause, and, to be fair, the soundbite is hilarious, but probably unintentionally so. Pawlenty told the crowd:

"At this very hour... a big event is happening in the USA: Tiger Woods is holding his press conference at 11 o'clock eastern. I think we can learn a lot from that situation, not from Tiger, but from his wife. So, she said, 'I've had enough.' She said, 'no more.' I think we should take a page out of her playbook and take a 9-iron and smash the window out of big government in this country."

It will probably take the left about three hours to start spinning this as a promotion of domestic violence and trying to brand Pawlenty as a violently unstable train wreck waiting to happen. If they succeed, it will be his only personality trait, so it's probably worth a shot. The more likely scenario here, however, is that Pawlenty knows his audience and is becoming increasingly aware of how little he stands out on the national scene. When you're competing for attention at a conference showcasing Glenn Beck, Dick Cheney, and this guy, off-color is often spot-on. And in the realm of possible ways to incite a rabid crowd to violence, this one ranks fairly low, if only for being about golf. Watch Pawlenty deliver his barn-burner of a joke below:

video In a slow, deliberate, 12-minute address by Tiger Woods, one of the greatest athletes of all time, he apologized and shed some light on his future plans. It began with a slow walk alone to a podium in front of a blue curtain ("It looks like a magic show," said Rick Reilly on ESPN) and ended with a hug from his mom who was sitting in the front row of the small audience. Here's what happened in between, with video of the statement. (more...)

Who knew the fallout from Tiger Woods driving his car into a fire hydrant could be so far-reaching. The least surprising outcome from last month's debacle is perhaps that sponsors are reconsidering their support -- Shep Smith noted yesterday that perhaps husbands and wives will be reconsidering presents with the Tiger endorsement on it this Christmas. One of the most surprising things -- other than the fact such a small incident has turned into such a large one -- is how it may be changing the way we get our news. Literally. (more...)

Let's call this Redemption: Act I. In a new post on his official website, beleaguered golfer and insatiable lothario Tiger "Cheetah" Woods announced that he will be taking an "indefinite break from professional golf." And maybe extramarital sex? "I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father, and person," a spokesperson likely wrote, under the guise that the words were straight from the Tiger's mouth. (more...)

“There are many, many, many doors that many, many, many people would prefer stay tightly closed for now.”

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developing The Tiger Woods gossip of the past two weeks seems to have had real-world consequences: a blonde woman was rushed to the hospital from Woods' house and put on "advanced life support" last night. Details are hazy, but Tiger Woods' mother-in-law, Barbro Holmberg, appears to have been staying at his house, and according to some accounts, the woman looked like Woods' wife Elin Nordegren. (more...)

Is it just us, or has Glenn Beck been awfully low-key lately? Maybe it's just post-Thanksgiving mellowness or Christmas Sweater promotions or something, but he has not been up to the grandstanding stunts like pretending to boil a live frog or finding communist artwork at 30 Rock that made him a household name/Glee punchline in record time. Which is why we almost missed these Tiger Woods jokes Beck told on his radio program two days ago. He also called Tiger a "dirtbag:" (more...)

update Well it appears that there might be something to the rumors of his infidelity. Tiger Woods has just released a statement on his website TigerWoods.com that appears to own up to the rumors of not staying faithful to his wife Elin Nordergren, to whom he married five years ago. It opens with "I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart." The full statement after the jump. (more...)

video As more details emerged about the circumstances of the Tiger Woods car crash, the more suspicions were raised that there may be more to the story. Now TMZ.com has blown the reported version of events wide open - alleging domestic violence led to the injuries, and the car crash was used as a cover up. (more...)