Tim Pawlenty describes the ideal vice president

— -- Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a surrogate for Mitt Romney's presidential campaign and possible running mate short-lister, described the ideal vice president during an interview with HotAir's Ed Morrissey.

"You need somebody who is ready to be president of the United States, has the requisite experience, maturity and judgement, discernment, wisdom strength to be president and all the other characteristics you want to see in that office," Pawlenty said. "You need somebody in that office who is capable, and certainly Mitt Romney fits the bill and I think he would want somebody--he has said many times--who can step in in the unfortunate event that something happened to the president. And two, there's a lot of other factors. It's like a stew that goes into it, so you think of things like geography. What state is the person from or what region might he or her might best help with in terms of trying to get Governor Romney elected? You think of how they might balance each other, either personally or politically in terms of balancing off strengths and weakness and much, much more."

As for whether he's up for the job, Pawlenty repeated the line that anyone would be "honored" to be considered.

"I've been down this road before," he said. "Last time in 2008 I was on the short list. I really want to help Governor Romney as I can as a volunteer. I think I can help him best in other ways but obviously anybody would be honored to be asked to consider serving in such a position."

Watch the full interview: