Va. Gov. Kaine A Focus In Obama VP Search

Washington Post: Sens. Evan Bayh, Joe Biden Also Under Serious Consideration

(Washingtonpost.com)  This story was written by Michael D. Shear and Shailagh Murray.

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Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine has told close associates that he has had "very serious" conversations with Sen. Barack Obama about joining the Democratic presidential ticket and has provided documents to the campaign as it combs through his background, according to several sources close to Kaine.

Sens. Evan Bayh (Ind.) and Joseph R. Biden Jr. (Del.) are also being seriously vetted by the campaign staff, according to sources with knowledge of the process.

Obama has revealed little about which way he is leaning. And despite rising anticipation that a decision is imminent, campaign officials said an announcement is likely in mid-August, shortly before the Democratic National Convention. Obama's top aides, David Plouffe and David Axelrod, huddled yesterday in the Washington office of Eric Holder, who along with Caroline Kennedy is vetting potential running mates.

Although rumors have circulated about former military leaders and other nontraditional contenders, including Republicans, Obama's pool of prospects is heavy on longtime senators with foreign policy experience. Kaine and Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius are the only state leaders believed to be under serious consideration, sources close to Obama said.

Democrats who have discussed possible choices with campaign officials and have knowledge of the vetting process said others being considered include Sens. Christopher J. Dodd (Conn.) and Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and former senator Sam Nunn (Ga.). Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel (Neb.) and Democratic Sen. Jack Reed (R.I.) are mentioned as long shots.

Aides to Kaine declined to comment about the possibility that Obama might pick him, referring all questions to the senator's campaign. "The governor has been pretty clear from the beginning, when Senator Obama asked him to be a national co-chair, that any conversation he has with the campaign, on any topic, are conversations that he is keeping private," said Delacey Skinner, Kaine's spokeswoman.

But several people who have spoken to Kaine said he has talked about the seriousness of the possibility. Each spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing the campaign's desire to keep the process secret. One said Kaine has stressed that there are other top candidates but described his discussions with the campaign as "very serious."

Two other associates said Kaine's staff is providing the background information necessary to allow the campaign to search for potential political land mines. One source said Kaine chief counsel Larry Roberts is coordinating with Obama's team. Roberts could not be reached for comment Kaine will be in Washington today for his monthly interview on WTOP Radio.

Kaine and Obama became friends after they campaigned together during Kaine's 2005 gubernatorial race. Kaine, who like Obama has Kansas roots, has returned the favor, stumping nationwide for the senator from Illinois during the primaries. In recent weeks, Kaine and his staff have been in frequent contact with Obama and his campaign about strategy and operations in Virginia and elsewhere. The governor has said he plans to attend the Democratic convention in Denver with his wife and children.

Picking Kaine would seem to satisfy many considerations Obama has recently laid out. During an interview with Tom Brokaw on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday, the presumptive Democratic nominee said he was looking for someone who shares his desire to change Washington politics.

Kaine, a former Richmond mayor, would bring outside-the-Beltway credentials to the campaign. The relationship the two share would seem to fit with Obama's desire, as he said, for someone "with independence -- who's willing to tell me where he thinks, or she thinks, I'm wrong." And the governor probably would bolster Obama in Virginia, where the campaign is making an all-out push.

But Kaine has no foreign policy background, and as a first-term governor, he may add to voters' concerns about Obama's experience. Kaine remains popular in Virginia, but he has had trouble dealing with Republicans and has no single defining achievement to point to on the campaign trail.

In 2005, the major issue Republicans took aim at was his opposition to the death penalty, but since becoming governor, Kaine has declined to stop several executions.

In interviews, Obama has hinted that experience would factor into his decision on a running mate.

"I want somebody who I'm compatible with, who I can work with, who has a shared vision, who certainly complements me, in the sense that they provide a knowledge base or an area of expertise that can be useful. Because we're going to have a lot of problems and a lot of work to do," he said Sunday. "I want somebody who's going to be able to roll up their sleeves and really do some work."

Speaking to Brokaw, he reiterated that Clinton "would be on anybody's short list." Yet few people close to the Obama campaign think she is a serious contender.

Biden, whose own presidential bid ended in January, could help to balance Obama's shortcomings. He is one of his party's most prominent foreign policy voices, fluent in issues as varied as Iraq and narcotics trafficking. Elected in 1972, he also has deep ties to the Democratic establishment. With his blue-collar Scranton, Pa., roots, Biden could prove a valued surrogate in key Midwestern swing states.

But the outspoken Biden also is known for the occasional verbal gaffe, and his long tenure in Washington could muddle Obama's call for change.

Democratic observers say the safest bet may be Bayh, a former governor from a Republican state who is known for his centrist views. Obama supporters who are pressing for Bayh say that he would stir no controversy, nor would he overshadow the nominee, as an elder statesman like Biden might. Obama supporters who oppose Bayh counter that he is too conventional and too much of a Washington insider.

Reed, a military expert, is viewed as a lower-profile version of Biden who could take on a substantial national security portfolio. Like Kaine, Sebelius, Dodd and Biden, Reed also is a Roman Catholic, and his roots are humble -- his father was a school custodian.

Reed brushed aside speculation that was stirred last week when he accompanied Obama to Irq and Afghanistan. "I am interested in serving in the United States Senate, and that interest trumps any consideration of serving as a vice president," he told the Providence Journal.

As a decision approaches, speculation about Obama's choices has intensified.

Speaking on "Fox News Sunday," the Weekly Standard's William Kristol said he thinks Obama has already decided on Kaine.

Obama is "in Washington on Tuesday, two days from now. He'll have a secret meeting with Tim Kaine -- this is my theory -- they'll work it all out," Kristol said. "And then on Monday, next Monday, August 4th, 11 a.m. in Richmond, Obama and Tim Kaine, and that will be an attractive young ticket. . . . I'm way out there on a limb here."

Staff writer Tim Craig contributed to this report.

[zerato-2009]

''''m sorry, maybe you did''''nt notice that Foxnews confirmed the encounter with the security guard at the hotel. God forbid you Dem.s should have to view indepent media outlets.

Posted by qpublic

A enquirer story confirmation by faux news. That is a lie built in hell

[ariel133]

The Obama speech actually reveals an even more naive view of the world than we had previously been treated to in the United States.

His speech was truly radical, from an American perspective.


Having earlier proclaimed himself "a fellow citizen of the world" Obama explained that the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Europe proved "that there is no challenge too great for a world that stands as one."

Perhaps Obama needs a remedial course in Cold War history, but the Berlin Wall most certainly did not come down because "the world stood as one."

The wall fell because of a decades-long, existential struggle against one of the greatest totalitarian ideologies mankind has ever faced. It was a struggle in which strong and determined U.S. leadership was constantly questioned, both in Europe and by the senator''s own Democratic Party. The successes Obama refers to in his speech -- the defeat of Nazism, the Berlin airlift and the collapse of communism -- were all gained by strong alliances defeating determined opponents of freedom, not by "one-worldism."

But beyond the incoherence, there is a deeper problem, namely that "walls" exist not simply because of a lack of understanding about who is on the other side but because there are true differences in values and interests that lead to human conflict. That is knowledge Obama knows very little about.

[qpublic]

I''m sorry, maybe you did''nt notice that Foxnews confirmed the encounter with the security guard at the hotel. God forbid you Dem.s should have to view indepent media outlets.

[zerato-2009]

Posted by qpublic at 07:51 AM : Jul 30, 2008

need to stop reading the enquirer or you will want to search for those alien babies flying over alabama

[zerato-2009]

A muslim in the White House??? Can anyone accept that???

Posted by johnbush2

Is that all you repubs have? Inferring obama a muslim. Is your candidate so bad as to fan racism in this country. You are the reasons people want change.

[qpublic]

How come John Edwards name has dropped off the list of potential VP''s without a word from the press? Could it be he is too busy *** his girlfrien while his wife is dying of cancer? What a hypocrit, how else could he have made it to the top of the Democratic party.

[johnbush2-2009]

On Election Day, many people are going to cast their vote for McCain because they believe in him, but many others will vote for McCain simply because they just can''t take the idea of Obama in the White House.

A muslim in the White House??? Can anyone accept that???

[ragnar30066]

Speaking of Hillary, didn''t Obama commit to helping Hillary retire her campaign debt? Which makes sense since he has eclipsed all previous records for campaign fundraising.

Yes he did.

So when was he planning to honor that commitment? Are all his commitments written on the wind?

It''s still not too late. In Denver, nominate someone who fulfills their commitments.

[mbcsmith]

John Edwards, the man with a wife, mistress and lust child.
Poor elizabeth now fighting cancer alone!

[mbcsmith]

All things considered, I think Hillary is the best choice for Barack ... at this point in time. Not my favorite choice, but the best choice. First and foremost, we''''ve got to win ... or its four more years of the McSame. Hillary best helps us do that.


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Posted by emelder at 03:30 PM : Jul 29, 2008



Hillary is running away from Nobama. Where''s the supprt she promised.

Hillary primary voters need to sit up and take notice. She doesn''t want Nobama for president either!

[beader59]

Who is this idiot and what right does he have to say he is a strong contender? That is Obama''s job. But wait, Obama has to be able flip-flop.

[larrymiz137]

I would rather have four more yrs of the same than a anti american running the country.

[emelder]

All things considered, I think Hillary is the best choice for Barack ... at this point in time. Not my favorite choice, but the best choice. First and foremost, we''ve got to win ... or its four more years of the McSame. Hillary best helps us do that.

[larrymiz137]

What do you Dem Libs think of your man O bama now that he has flip floped his way into likeing all of the polices the Republicans do sence you voted for him in the primarys

[minuteman-5]

Posted by CBS4me3 at 03:09 PM :

Well thank you for your post, I was wondering if any Hillary supporters disliked what Howard Dean and Obama did to their votes, throwing them in the trash and how Obama''s church of 20 years made fun of Hillary, which was distasteful.....didn''t you think?

Thank you for voting for the honorable John McCain

[downtowner97]

Harp1963 thanks for that link. That was an excellent speech.

[cbs4me3]

As a Hillary Democrat, it makes no difference who is the VP. I voted for Hillary in the Virginia election, and I am disgusted with this party. Now part of John''s silent majority, we wait patiently for November.

[downtowner97]

Vet999999, you''re wrong. Stevens is a Republican. I know you don''t want to own him right now, but you do. I remember when Fox News broke the story about Senator Craig trying to get a date in the bathroom. They showed him as a Democrat.

[downtowner97]

Obama could sew up my vote right now if he named Wesley Clark as his running mate.

[harp1963]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QIGJTHdH50