Pawlenty Says Nation Heading for 'Double-Dip' Recession

Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty predicts the nation is heading for a "double-dip" recession, as a result of too much government money in the economy.

Pawlenty, who this month announced his presidential exploratory committee, told Fox News on Tuesday that Americans may see "temporary improvement" because Washington has "artificially infused the economy."

But he warned that the consequences of that would "rear its head."

"I think we are headed for a double dip. That's my personal view," Pawlenty told Fox News. "I think you have a situation now where they've devalued the dollar. A strong dollar represents a strong economy and a strong country. I think they have flooded the economy with fiat money in a way that's going to have a return of inflation in a manner and to a degree that I think is going to be very troubling."

Pawlenty, criticizing the Obama administration on several fronts, said not enough attention has been paid to the private sector as part of the economic recovery.

The ex-governor also picked apart President Obama's foreign policy performance in response to the unrest across the Middle East. He said the administration's message was "incoherent" in the run-up to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak being pressured to step down, and that Libya is no different.

"Our role is not to be one of many," Pawlenty said, criticizing the president for downplaying the United States' role in the Libya intervention. "He is weak. ... and he doesn't believe what we believe."

The president, in an address to the nation Monday, staunchly defended his decision to send U.S. forces to Libya. He said the United States had a "responsibility to act" to prevent what he called a potential "massacre" at the hands of Muammar al-Qaddafi. At the same time, he said the United States should not shoulder the burden of such humanitarian missions alone, stressing the importance of international cooperation.