Clinton-Kaine debuts in Florida

Behind running mate’s smile is steel backbone, she says

Tim Kaine makes his first appearance as Hillary Clinton’s running mate Saturday at a rally at Florida International University in Miami.
Tim Kaine makes his first appearance as Hillary Clinton’s running mate Saturday at a rally at Florida International University in Miami.

MIAMI -- Hillary Clinton debuted running mate Tim Kaine as a can-do progressive committed to social justice and equality -- "everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not" -- during a rally Saturday ahead of this week's Democratic National Convention.

photo

AP

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., hugs his wife, Anne Holton, on Saturday in Miami during an appearance with Hillary Clinton.

"He is qualified to step into this job and lead from Day One. And he is a progressive who likes to get things done," Clinton declared at Florida International University.

Kaine, a U.S. senator and bilingual former Virginia governor, detailed his life in public service. "I like to fight for right," he said.

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 limited remarks from Pence, the Indiana governor. The two posed only briefly for photos at their campaign kickoff.

Clinton chose to introduce Kaine, 58, as her running mate in the battleground state of Florida. They waved to a crowd of cheering supporters as they bounded onto the stage with their hands raised in the traditional sign of unity. Clinton sought to present the partnership as built on optimism. She panned the Republican convention, which ended two days earlier, as a display of "fear," "anger and resentment."

Meanwhile, Trump, in a text to his supporters, said President Barack Obama, Clinton and Kaine are "the ultimate insiders" and implored voters to not "let Obama have a 3rd term."

Kaine was long viewed as a likely choice for Clinton's vice president because of his resume in government and his time as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. He also had a particularly powerful backer in Obama, whom Kaine endorsed in 2007. Obama considered him for vice president a year later.

Clinton noted that Kaine took a year off from Harvard Law School to do missionary work in Honduras, where he learned Spanish, and had worked as a civil-rights attorney specializing in equal housing. Clinton said Kaine as governor worked with Republicans and helped his home state navigate the most recent recession without sacrificing funding for education.

As Clinton smiled broadly behind him, Kaine greeted Saturday's largely Hispanic audience in Spanish.

"We're going to be 'companeros de alma' in this great 'lucha' ahead," he said, or "soul mates in this great fight ahead."

Kaine is expected to be a valuable asset for the Democratic ticket in appealing to Hispanic Americans turned off by Trump's rhetoric about immigrants.

Kaine spoke about immigration laws and Trump's comments about Hispanics, then asked the naturalized citizens in the room to raise their hands. Hundreds did. "Thanks for choosing us," he told them. "Bienvenidos a todos a nuestro pais, porque somos americanos todos," Kaine told the crowd at another point -- welcome all to our country, because we're all American.

Clinton pointed to Kaine's work on gun control after the deadly Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, praising his efforts to curb gun violence in a nation still reeling from a series of shootings by and against police.

"Behind that smile Tim also has a backbone of steel. Just ask the NRA," Clinton said, referring to the National Rifle Association.

Kaine choked up as he described the Virginia Tech shooting as the "worst day ... of my life."

He later blasted the Republican ticket, assailing Trump as someone who has left "a trail of broken promises and wrecked lives wherever he goes."

Clinton "doesn't insult people. She listens to them," Kaine said.

"What a novel concept," he added.

Kaine vouched for Clinton's trustworthiness, telling the crowd, "She has always delivered."

He pointed out that his father-in-law was a Republican governor of Virginia who had integrated the public schools, and he called marrying his wife, Anne Holton, "the best decision of my life." The Kaines planned to be back in Richmond this morning for Catholic Mass.

Holton Kaine, who wiped away tears during her husband's speech, is Virginia's education secretary and a former state judge. The couple has three adult children, including a son, Nat, who is a Marine leaving on a deployment Monday, aides said.

Taking the microphone after sharing a peck on the cheek and pat on the back with Clinton, Kaine said he was "feeling a lot of things today, but mostly gratitude."

"For many of you, this is the first time you've heard my name," Kaine said. "I'm excited for us to get to know one another."

Trump tweets

Trump did not make any public appearances Saturday but took to Twitter to seek to undercut Clinton and her running mate, pointing to the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal and Wall Street as areas where supporters of one-time Clinton rival Bernie Sanders might split with Kaine.

Trump tweeted that Kaine "has been praising the Trans Pacific Partnership and has been pushing hard to get it approved. Job killer!" In a tweet earlier in the day, Trump wrote that Kaine was "owned by the banks. Bernie supporters are outraged, was their last choice. Bernie fought for nothing!"

Kaine is viewed skeptically by some liberals, who dislike his 2015 vote to provide the president with "fast-track authority" on trade deals and recent stances on Wall Street regulations, including rules governing regional banks.

Clinton opposed the trade deal during the primaries against Sanders, citing concerns about job protections and national security.

A Clinton campaign aide said Kaine made clear "in the course of discussions" that he shares Clinton's opposition to the trade deal in its current form.

But progressive groups said they want more assurances that the White House, which has pushed the trade deal, won't try to ram it through after the November election.

"The selection increases the burden on Hillary Clinton to pressure the White House to take TPP off the table in a lame-duck Congress," said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, using the abbreviation to refer to the trade deal.

But Larry Cohen, a former president of the Communications Workers of America union and a top Sanders adviser, said Kaine's record needs to be considered in its totality.

"Most Harvard Law graduates don't go into civil-rights work in the South," said Cohen, who first met Kaine when he served as Richmond's mayor.

"His life has been those kinds of choices. He's never run after big money. He's always run after, 'How can I make a difference?'"

Some Florida rallygoers expressed curiosity and excitement about Kaine.

"I'm trying to get to know more about him," said Karen Iglesias, a health educator from West Kendall who is of Bolivian descent. "It's great he speaks Spanish -- he's able to communicate with our community."

Information for this article was contributed by Ken Thomas and Lisa Lerer of The Associated Press; by Patricia Mazzei, Amy Sherman and Alex Daugherty of The Miami Herald; and by Jennifer Epstein of Bloomberg News.

A Section on 07/24/2016

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