I was just posting my meme to Twitter when, that second, the announcement came over the wires (OK, a little notification popped up on my iphone): Hillary Clinton selects VA Senator Tim Kaine as her Vice-President.
I want Hillary's veep to be #TimKaine so I can say I was first with this #YesWeKaine pic.twitter.com/Q0WepxrYbB
— Louise Mensch (@LouiseMensch) July 23, 2016
That’s right, Yes We Kaine was already helping a sister out.
Liberals were unhappy, which clearly meant that Hillary Clinton had chosen exactly the right pick.
Wrong Choice…Tim Kaine Calls To Deregulate Banks As He Campaigns To Be Clinton's VP https://t.co/xXCbxtwsm1
— Mark Ruffalo (@MarkRuffalo) July 21, 2016
But for all the reasons celebrity actor-vists like Mark Ruffalo hate Tim Kaine, moderate Republicans love him. He’s a free trade supporter who backs TPP when Donald Trump has called for protectionism. He’s tried to avoid abortion without trammeling abortion facilities. He’s a white male from a swing, industrial state, Virginia, and won’t scare the horses in nearby Ohio, but at the same time, Kaine speaks fluent Spanish.
Michael Moore hates, and I mean HATES, Tim Kaine. Need any more of a swing-voter recommendation than that?
Show me 1 voter gained by naming Tim Kaine. Att'n Hillary campaign: It's not Trump who'll beat u. It's the people who are going to stay home
— Michael Moore (@MMFlint) July 23, 2016
Within minutes, social media were trotting out Mike Pence’s convention line about Donald Trump – “You can’t fake good kids” – and using it to compare Kaine’s son, a U.S. Marine, with Trump’s playboys holding a dead jaguar:
Frankly, Tim Kaine shows that Hillary Clinton wants to win – and on her terms. Far from choosing Elizabeth Warren or Bernie Sanders, she tacked hard right. Kaine on free trade is far, far more Republican than Donald Trump. He also won’t tolerate Vladimir Putin, whom Trump openly admires.
Both Mike Pence and Tim Kaine were solid VP picks for nominees who are both old and sick (Trump is obese, Clinton suffered a brain trauma as Secretary of State). The VP always, in this election especially, has to be ready to take office. Kaine and Pence both are.
Even liberals were blown away by Kaine’s first speech by Clinton’s side.
Tim Kaine made his privileged white children attend an all black school in Richmond, VA. Ok, now I love him ???? #maddow #ClintonKaine2016
— Shashana (@1978BABY) July 23, 2016
I can't find one single snarky or negative thing to say about @timkaine speech right now. That's a first for me. ????
— Ana Navarro (@ananavarro) July 23, 2016
.@timkaine former Bernie supporter here, sir. Totally fell in love today as you CRUSHED it. GR8 speech. So excited for #ClintonKaine ❤️????????????
— (((Aunt PithyPat))) (@YourVeganHO) July 23, 2016
@realDonaldTrump you are wrong again. As a Bernie supporter I'm extremely pleased with Tim Kaine. Great speech. I'm onboard and donating!
— nhirsch (@nhirsch) July 23, 2016
Trump pretty much had to crawl into a hole and politically cry as Republicans piled in to praise Tim Kaine too, especially those Republican leaders who can’t stand Democrat Trump:
Trying to count the ways I hate @timkaine. Drawing a blank. Congrats to a good man and a good friend.
— Jeff Flake (@JeffFlake) July 23, 2016
1. There's a remarkable # of issues on which Clinton-Kaine is ideologically closer to Romney-Ryan (for better or worse) than is Trump.
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) July 23, 2016
Mike Pence and Tim Kaine are both good guys. Couldn't we re-shuffle the tickets, and have a choice between Pence-Kaine and Trump-Clinton?
— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) July 23, 2016
There is now very little for moderate Republicans to hate on the Clinton-Kaine ticket. After the disastrous Cleveland GOP convention, which was unprofessional in every possible way, Tim Kaine will have the opportunity for a home run in Philly. And although it is not being talked about very much, his selection says many good things about Hillary’s strategic judgement and political nous.
