US Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and US Senator Tim Kaine, Democrat of Virginia, wave during a campaign rally. The choice has never been clearer – Donald Trump calls on us to Believe in America, while the Status Quo ticket of Clinton-Kaine wants us to believe in a rigged system that enriches them at your expense.
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Mr Kaine speaks fluent Spanish and could help the Clinton campaign maintain its support among Hispanic Americans – a growing voting bloc.
Kaine could help Clinton in Virginia, a heavily contested swing state, and would be replaced in the Senate by another Democrat chosen by Democratic Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, a close friend and ally of Clinton.
Clintons plans to pick Kaine, hinted at for several days leading up her Friday announcement, had been viewed as a safe choice against the Republican ticket of Trump and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence.
Kaine had a clear edge over two other candidates among the final contenders: Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, a Democratic source with knowledge of the discussions said. The Democratic candidate made no mention of her impending pick during a somber meeting with community leaders and family members affected by the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando and a later campaign rally in Tampa. “It needs to be someone who whenever they walk into a room you are glad to see them and want to have them as part of any conversation”, the campaign official quoted Podesta telling her. But even some Republicans, like Arizona senator Jeff Flake, said Mr Kaine was an all around nice guy.
Tim Kaine is indeed a popular face in Virginia politics. “Tim Kaine as my running mate”.
Clinton and Kaine, meanwhile, will appear at Florida International University in Miami. “Can’t wait to hit the trail tomorrow in Miami”, Kaine said on Twitter.
“People are going to discount Tim Kaine, and have in the past, and it’s going to be a lot more exciting than maybe what Bernie Sanders delegates will think”, said Katie Naranjo, a Clinton superdelegate from Austin, Texas. He was chairman of the DNC during the disastrous 2010 midterm elections for Democrats that saw them lose the House. Before that he served both as mayor of Richmond and governor of Virginia.
Kaine was a widely expected choice. The three speeches she gave at Goldman Sachs after leaving the State Department, to the tune of $225,000 each, and her refusal to release the transcripts, hounded her during the primaries.
And we have a victor for the Democratic veepstakes!
Clinton continues to be dogged by allegations of impropriety relating to her use of a private email server during her time as Secretary of State. Shortly after Friday’s announcement, Stephanie Taylor of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee said Kaine’s support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact gives Republicans “a new opening to attack Democrats on this economic populist issue”.
Along the way, Kaine also has served as chairman of the National Democratic Party, taught in law school and practiced as a civil rights lawyer.
As Clinton finalized her decision, Trump met with supporters in Cleveland to run through a long list of thank-yous after his four-day convention. “Drawing a blank. Congrats to a good man and a good friend”, he tweeted. His father-in-law is also a former Virginia governor. With top Democrat Senator Charles Schumer of NY opposing the administration on the deal, Kaine filled the vacuum by helping to whip senators to support the administration on a fateful procedural vote that prevented the Senate from blocking the deal. One aide speculated he would be effective in reaching out to congressional Republicans if he becomes vice president, a role Vice President Joe Biden has played for Obama.
Kaine’s selection to a presidential ticket comes after a step-by-step political rise that began with his election to the Richmond City Council 22 years ago.
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He’s a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a frequent critic of what he considers Congress’s “cowardly” refusal to debate and vote on taking military action against the Islamic State group terrorists, also known as ISIL or ISIS.
