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As he launched his this week, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said being back in the city鈥檚 Jackson Ward neighborhood felt like 鈥渢ime has collapsed.鈥�
Three decades ago, that was where he got his political start knocking doors in his first run for the Richmond City Council. After serving as Virginia鈥檚 lieutenant governor and governor and extensively traveling the state, Kaine told supporters Tuesday at Richmond鈥檚 Hippodrome Theater, he鈥檚 confident Virginians will again reject former President Donald Trump and Republicans like him who 鈥渨ant to tear us down and tear us apart.鈥�
鈥淚n good times or bad times, Virginians are not mean-spirited, pessimistic, name-calling complainers,鈥� Kaine said. 鈥淲e are upbeat, can-do, roll-up-your-sleeves, get-the-job-done people. We stand up for democracy and equality. We stand up for economic opportunity. We stand up for reproductive rights and voting rights. And most importantly, we stand up for each other.鈥�
It鈥檚 not yet clear who Kaine鈥檚 Republican challenger will be, but the senator鈥檚 initial burst of campaign stops this week are a preview of the general-election message Virginia Democrats plan to deploy this year.
Taking aim at former Trump, who lost Virginia in both 2016 and 2020 but聽聽last month, Kaine said his would-be GOP challengers are 鈥渕arching in lockstep behind this man so intent on tearing us down.鈥�
鈥淭earing down his opponents, Republicans and Democrats. Tearing down our institutions, professional civil servants, a free press, an independent judiciary,鈥� Kaine said. 鈥淭earing down precious rights, like reproductive freedom, that people have been able to count on for decades. Tearing down alliances like NATO that strengthen democracy here and around the globe. Tearing down personal virtues: honesty, fidelity, patriotism, kindness, respect for others. Even tearing down our democracy.鈥�
Longtime Virginia political analyst Bob Holsworth said he鈥檚 doubtful Republicans will be able to make the state a presidential battleground in 2024, after Trump lost to Biden by more than 10 percentage points in 2020. But with Biden鈥檚 approval numbers 鈥渋n the tank鈥� in Virginia, Holsworth said, Kaine and other Democrats probably shouldn鈥檛 assume another double-digit victory is coming in 2024.
鈥淢y sense is the most worrisome problem the Democrats could have is complacency,鈥� Holsworth said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think Kaine can start by thinking it鈥檚 a 10-point state. In that sense he should run very hard. 鈥�
Holsworth said there could be a 鈥渞everse coattails鈥� dynamic in Virginia, with Kaine鈥檚 popularity giving a boost to the less popular Democratic president at the top of the ticket. With Republicans seeming to lack a candidate with serious mainstream appeal, he said, Virginia鈥檚 U.S. Senate race should be 鈥渕ildly competitive鈥� at best.
Eight Republicans are currently in the running for their party鈥檚 U.S. Senate primary on June 18.
The biggest fundraisers so far have been former GOP congressional candidate Hung Cao, a U.S. Navy veteran who in 2022, lost to Democratic U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton in Northern Virginia鈥檚 10th District, and Scott Parkinson, who works for the conservative economic group Club for Growth and previously served as a congressional aide to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis when DeSantis was in the U.S. House of Representatives.
The other Republicans in the field, according to the Virginia Public Access Project: U.S. Army veteran Eddie Garcia; former Border Patrol agent and Trump-era immigration official Ron Vitiello; and attorneys Gwen Hickman, Jonathan Emord and Chuck Smith.
The Republicans hoping to run against Kaine have also sought to tie the incumbent to the not-particularly-popular leader of the Democratic Party, portraying Kaine as a reliable ally to Biden and a supporter of Democratic economic and immigration policies that have contributed to Biden鈥檚 low approval ratings. Several candidates recently attacked Kaine for saying he felt it was irresponsible and inflammatory to use the word 鈥渋nvasion鈥� to describe illegal crossings at the Southern border.
鈥淲hat we are witnessing at our Southern Border is an invasion despite what聽Tim Kaine聽and his Democrat colleagues want to call it, and they caused it to get to this point,鈥� Cao said in a recent Facebook post. 鈥淚f he wants to point fingers at anyone, it should be at himself and his colleagues. They want it this way. Period.鈥�
In a recent聽, Parkinson called the border crossings an invasion and said the situation was caused by 鈥渞adical liberals like Kaine.鈥�
Kaine has described what鈥檚 happening at the border as a 鈥渃risis鈥� and has emphasized his efforts to strike a bipartisan deal on immigration policy. During his appearance in Richmond, he called for immigration reform to be done in 鈥渁 way that honors our immigrant roots, ensures a vibrant workforce and creates a border that can be controlled.鈥�
Kaine also offered a defense of the state of the economy under Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.
鈥淛oe and Kamala have ensured that America has rebounded out of COVID-19 better than any nation on the planet,鈥� Kaine said. 鈥淛obs are up. Wages are up. Retirement savings are up. The percentage of folks without health insurance is lower than it鈥檚 ever been in the history of the United States.鈥�
In a sign of the discontent some on the left feel toward Democratic leaders, several demonstrators interrupted Kaine鈥檚 event at the Hippodrome with shouted commentary about Gaza.听 One protester asked Kaine when he was going to 鈥渟tand up鈥� against the bombing campaign Israel is carrying out in response to the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas militants.
Kaine said he understood the emotion and 鈥渉eartbreak鈥� people are feeling about Gaza.
鈥淲e need to find a hostage deal,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e need to find a ceasefire.鈥�
Speaking with reporters after the event, Kaine said he鈥檚 not taking his 2024 race for granted, but noted that his potential Republican challengers don鈥檛 appear to be doing themselves any favors by clamoring for credibility with their party鈥檚 Trump-loving base.
鈥淲hen they go on radio shows to try to get press, they鈥檙e kind of leapfrogging over each other to get more and more aligned with the MAGA wing of the Republican Party,鈥� Kaine said.
Because neither party may be inclined to devote major resources to Virginia in the presidential race, Kaine said he intends to help set up a Democratic campaign structure that can also assist Democratic candidates in competitive congressional races in the Hampton Roads-based 2nd District and the open races for the 10th and 7th districts in Northern Virginia.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to very much run my race to focus on those three districts,鈥� Kaine said.
Kaine was joined onstage at the Richmond event by U.S. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., who praised Kaine鈥檚 persistent sense of optimism at a rough time for national politics. To reinforce that point, Warner recalled the time Kaine spent 27 hours聽聽between Richmond and D.C.
鈥淚f I had been caught in that snowstorm on 95, as chairman of the intelligence committee I would have brought in a CIA swat team to get me out,鈥� Warner joked. 鈥淎s opposed to Tim, peacefully sitting there with his water and orange.鈥�
