Tim Kaine possesses an affable, gregarious, middle-class father personality that complements well with Hillary’s sometimes hawkish demeanor. It is for that reason, to the outcry of the far-left, he was chosen to be Hillary’s ultimate surrogate– her vice-presidential running mate. Kaine’s communicative skills, however, are weak in today’s harsh political climate.
For months, Kaine has been using his down-to-earth sometimes sheepishly heartwarming rhetoric to soften the edges around the Clinton campaign. When Clinton introduced Kaine as her running mate he proceeded to give a speech that fluctuated between English and Spanish. A move that has polled well within many Latino communities, and further reiterates the public perception of ‘Cool Dad Kaine’. Since then, Kaine has proved to be a versatile surrogate with broad appeal. With African-Americans, Kaine calls on his past as a civil-rights lawyer and his membership in a largely black church. As aforementioned, he’s weaponized his proficiency in Spanish as a way to connect with Latino voters. And lastly, his family-first, god-fearing, middle- class background has proven to be a successful rhetoric among white voters.
Having said this, conventional wisdom says Kaine should be a feared surrogate to the GOP opposition. However, the 2016 presidential race is no conventional campaign. With all the nastiness and insults involved in this race, Hillary Clinton needs surrogates that can be attack dogs for her. And this just isn’t Kaine’s forte; if Kaine chooses to succumb to all the nasty rhetoric he risks jeopardizing the Cool-Dad attitude that voters admire. For this very reason Kaine has found himself marginalized by the Clinton campaign.
On the biggest stage of his life, the vice-presidential debate, he had a chance to consolidate his affability with the attack dog mentality that is necessary in these kinds of debate. Kaine failed. Throughout the debate he appeared unhinged and flustered. The defining moment came when in response to a question about the Syrian refugee crisis he inexplicably went on a tangent over Donald Trump’s tax records. Furthermore, Kaine interrupted Pence around 70 times. What’s to blame isn’t Pence’s dodgy style and refusal to live in a world where the things Trump says exist. But Kaine’s close to impossible task of balancing the non-threatening, oh-gee-almighty dad narrative that the Clinton campaign has molded for him, while attempting to be an effective surrogate in this cycle.
I think Tim Kaine has good rhetoric in the sense of him being able to use smart word choices to target the kind of audience he wants. Like you said, he spoke Spanish when trying to address the Latino community. I just don’t think he always uses appropriate language when he is trying to be defensive. His forte is building people up with language, not tearing them down. Surrogates should be well rounded in all aspects, but I think Clinton is forcing him to be put in situations where he is not comfortable having to defend her by using negative language towards Trump.
You discuss how his down to earth and relatable rhetoric can be a hindrance to Clinton’s campaign, especially in the debate format. Do you think though that the benefits of his rhetoric style outweigh the cons? I think the campaign needs someone like Kaine to appeal to people like the middle-class whites and Latinos. You mention that this election is full of attacks. Personally, I find the constant nasty attacks very tiring in this campaign, and I would even guess that there are many Americans who feel the same way. I think the Kaine’s “cool dad” rhetoric and persona is breath of fresh air. I find I am more willing to listen to a speech that is inclusive and not laced with attacks. In addition, you state the Clinton campaign assigned him the “cool dad” persona. This causes me to think that the Clinton campaign knows what they are doing, and recognize the need for a “nice guy” admist all the mud slinging. All in all, there is indication that Kaine’s rhetoric is a strength rather and a weak link.
@mrharper We can learn something from the republican primary here. Attempting to respond to Mr. Trump’s incendiary language with inclusive, gaudy language proved to be ineffective. The strategy the Clinton camp is using with Kaine is reminiscent of Jeb Bush’s approach to Trump, a strategy that portrayed Jeb as weak. I don’t care about Kaine being a breath of fresh air; the ultimate goal of a campaign is to win, and Kaine’s rhetoric isn’t conducive to winning.