Trump, in a text to his own supporters, said Obama, Clinton and Kaine were “the ultimate insiders” and implored voters to not “let Obama have a 3rd term”.
Advertisement
“Senator Tim Kaine is everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not”, Clinton said. So far, she has notably abstained from weighing in on Kaine, despite several other Clinton VP contenders – including New Jersey Sen.
“I’m trying to get to know more about him”, said Karen Iglesias, a health educator from West Kendall who is of Bolivian descent.
Clinton unveiled her choice of Kaine late on Friday, grabbing the political spotlight from Trump, who accepted the Republican presidential nomination on Thursday night after a chaotic four-day convention.
The Clinton-Kaine ticket made its debut at a Miami, Florida, campaign event in the running mates’ first public appearance together since the Virginia senator was named the vice presidential pick.
Trump boasted of his TV ratings, his primary victories and other achievements, including winning over his wife, Melania, in a stream-of-consciousness delivery with his vice presidential nominee, Indiana Gov. Mike Pence, standing quietly nearby.
Kaine is a swing state lawmaker with extensive governing experience – as a former governor, lieutenant governor and Richmond mayor.
“Hillary Clinton’s choice of Tim Kaine does nothing to unify a fractured Democrat base which is repelled by her dishonesty and cronyism”, said Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus.
“Make no mistake, behind that smile, Tim also has a backbone of steel”, Clinton said.
These included his work as a civil rights lawyer and the time he has spent with missionaries in Central America, depicting him as a man dedicated to social justice.
Clinton picked Kaine after evaluating 24 contenders, according to a campaign official. He promised to take on the National Rifle Association and fight for “common sense” gun control.
“Bienvenidos a todos a nuestro país porque somos americanos todos”, Kaine said nearly immediately after taking the podium at Florida International University in Miami.
“Tim Kaine is a conventional choice at an unconventional time”, said Adam Luna, a spokesman for United We Dream. For example, Kaine initially supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade deal opposed by labor groups and some in the Democratic party’s base.
Mrs Clinton, 68, acknowledged in an interview earlier this week that even Senator Kaine admits he is boring, and said she did not mind.
Florida is the nation’s premier battleground state, and the bilingual Kaine is likely to be a valuable asset in Spanish-language media as the campaign appeals to Hispanic Americans turned off by Trump’s harsh rhetoric about immigrants. “He is a progressive that likes to get things done”.
Referring to Kaine as “more conservative than Hillary Clinton”, Sanders supporter Cameron Sato of Honolulu told NPR that “by picking someone who’s that progressive… they’re not necessarily pushing the agenda in the way we want to see it”.
Ahead of its start Monday, some Bernie Sanders supporters there expressed reservations about Kaine’s record and worry that he’s not progressive enough.
Kaine, 58, who repeatedly addressed the crowd in fluent Spanish, described growing up in Kansas and attending a Jesuit boys school, learning that the proper approach in life is to “do all the good you can”.
Wasting no time targeting Trump, Kaine asked the Miami crowd, “Do you want a “you’re fired” president or a “you’re hired” president?”
Advertisement
At the splashy rally, Democrats sought to offer a contrast with Trump and Pence, whose first appearance together in a New York City hotel ballroom included a lengthy speech by the GOP businessman and much more limited remarks from Pence, the in governor.
