Kaine speech

The suburban dad delivers

Tim Kaine produced just enough memorable moments.

By Burgess Everett

It was a tough spot for Tim Kaine: sandwiched between Joe Biden, the party’s beloved vice president, and President Barack Obama, still wildly popular among Democrats, both delivering their final convention speeches after eight years in office.

But Tim Kaine was “listo” — ready — for his turn in the spotlight.

He was stiffer than during his more raucous debut in Miami on Saturday days ago, and the strategic bits of Spanish didn’t resonate as well. But as he navigated a high-wattage night of Democratic stars here, he produced just enough memorable moments, breaking out a stilted but effective impression of Donald Trump and his “believe me” rhetoric and animating the audience with call and response chants that returned life to a crowd that had just given Biden at least eight standing ovations.

“Do you really believe him?” Kaine asked after warming the audience up with Trump’s faux New York accent.

“No,” shouted the crowd of partisan in unison. “Not one word.”

Despite his background as a former big city mayor, Kaine projected the image of a suburban dad as he addressed the crowd in the prime-time hour, selling Hillary Clinton’s credentials as a pro-immigration reform, pro-gun control Democrat and casting Trump as a villainous politician who’s shielding his taxes from the public: “Hey Donald, what are ya hiding?”

Despite the liberal skepticism of Kaine, there were no boos from the crowd. Instead, the protests were mostly silent: Dozens of delegates, many from California, stood for the entire address with anti-Trans-Pacific Partnership signs. Kaine says he now opposes TPP after previously saying positive things about it.

“He didn’t do anything offensive enough to get boos from the Berners. So kudos to him for navigating that minefield,” said Angela Mendieta, a North Carolina Sanders delegate who nonetheless described Kaine as “McCain with a K.”

While there was no sustained booing, as some expected, frustrated liberals still made their voices heard. The chant, “Hey hey, ho ho, TPP has got to go,” broke through Kaine’s address for a few moments, before being quieted by pro-Kaine cheers. Pro-Clinton delegates shushed the raucous pro-Sanders Oklahoma delegation when they tried to chant “no TPP.”

Kaine received nearly as much warmth from the crowd as Biden, even if the vice president has been in the national spotlight for decades. Many delegates stood for Kaine’s entire address — despite the fact that some were saving their energy for the next act: the president.

“Biden is more likable,” said Melanie Pinto of Eugene, Oregon, another Sanders supporter. “I don’t know if that’s a familiarity thing. Kaine knows this is his introduction.”

That unfamiliarity with Kaine was on display both during and before the address. Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia introduced him, imploring Democrats to dive into his record and biography as a housing lawyer and Southern Democrat who took on the NRA and the tobacco industry, as well as a missionary in Honduras, where Kaine picked up his fluent Spanish.

“I can’t wait for the rest of the country to know the Tim Kaine that I know. That Virginia knows,” Scott said.

Rather than lean on his Spanish as heavily as in Miami, Kaine concentrated more on introducing himself as a family man and someone who can convert disaffected Republicans.

Making the case for Hillary Clinton, he said his Senate Republican colleagues privately praise Clinton as a strong senator. That might not be entirely accurate, but they do praise Kaine.

In an interview Wednesday, Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker called Kaine a “very solid pick.”

“I said that before he was picked,” said the Tennessee Republican. “I have nothing but good things to say about Tim Kaine.”

Kaine notably did not lay into the GOP as a whole, instead concentrating his fire on Trump, mocking him for his habit of telling voters to “believe me” when it comes to the details of how Trump would defeat ISIL and build a border wall, and whether the real estate tycoon has paid his fair share of taxes.

“Does anyone in this massive arena believe that Donald Trump’s paying his fair share of taxes?” Kaine asked. The crowd’s answer, of course, was no.

In contrast to Trump, Kaine said, Clinton has plans for immigration reform, national security and the economy. His address was mostly in English, but when a “si se puede” chant broke out, Kaine was happy to oblige.

As he closed, he explained the meaning of “listo” to the crowd: Clinton is ready to be president, he said, and Trump is not.

She’s “lista,” he finished, putting a bit of extra emphasis on the feminine adjective.