Kaine Says Top Priority This Year Is Va. Budget
Republicans Question Governor's Ability to Manage State's Finances and Chair DNC at Same Time

By Tim Craig
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, January 6, 2009

RICHMOND, Jan. 4 -- Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said Monday that his main focus this year will be working with Republicans in the General Assembly on the state's budget crisis, even as he pivots into his new additional role as the chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Kaine, who only a month ago said he was not interested in the job, said he changed his mind in recent weeks after a meeting with President-elect Barack Obama. Kaine described his new role as the chief cheerleader for the Democratic Party at an "all-hands-on-deck moment" to help Obama navigate an economic recovery and do "politics in a slightly different way."

"He is a very persuasive guy," Kaine said of Obama. "I am very humbled he would reach out to me."

But Kaine stressed that his main priority will be closing Virginia's $3 billion budget shortfall, which means he will rely on Democratic staffers and "computers and phones" to monitor party business from Richmond.

"I do know what comes first," Kaine said at a brief news conference.

But despite Kaine's assurances that he will remain a full-time governor, some legislators and political experts say Kaine's decision to take on both jobs simultaneously could cripple his efforts to get his budget and policy initiatives through the General Assembly. In addition, taking on such a partisan role will put enormous pressure on Kaine to help elect a Democratic successor, they said.

With Kaine about to become the national spokesman for his party, GOP legislators say the partisan tension at the Capitol will only worsen.

"You wouldn't take that job unless your main focus was trying to build the Democratic Party," said Del. Clarke N. Hogan (R-Charlotte), a close ally of House Speaker William J. Howell's (R-Stafford). "If that is your goal, fine. But that is not really consistent with saying, 'I want to work in a bipartisan way for what is best for Virginia.' "

House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith (R-Salem) said it will be difficult for GOP legislators to trust Kaine, setting the stage for a potentially grueling legislative session that could result in gridlock.

"We know that he will make the elimination of Republicans in Virginia his number one target as national chairman," Griffith said. "People are going to be uncomfortable, and that will have an impact."

Democratic legislative leaders strongly defended Kaine on Monday, saying they have confidence he will not be distracted by national party politics.

House Minority Leader Ward L. Armstrong (D-Henry) said Virginia stands to benefit by having a governor who has "the president's ear." Armstrong accused Republicans of being jealous of Kaine.

"I sometimes think moral indignation is jealousy with a halo, and they are just jealous that they lost the presidential election and they don't have someone who is governor about to be the chair of a major party," Armstrong said.

Senate Majority Leader Richard L. Saslaw (D-Fairfax) noted that Republicans did not object when James S. Gilmore III served as governor and as chairman of the Republican National Committee during his final year in office in 2001.

"I didn't hear a peep out of the Republicans when Gilmore was chairman of the RNC," Saslaw said.

But Gilmore's tenure as governor and party chairman illustrates the challenges that await Kaine.

Like Kaine, Gilmore was struggling to balance the budget in 2001 during an economic downturn. That November, Gilmore suffered a stinging political defeat when Democrat Mark R. Warner won Virginia's governor's race and Republicans also lost the governor's race in New Jersey. Virginia and New Jersey are the only two states that hold the governor's race the year after a presidential contest.

The GOP losses, along with growing tension between Gilmore and President Bush's political team, contributed to his resignation as party chairman in 2002.

In an interview, Gilmore said he learned from the experience that it's very hard to do both jobs at the same time.

"Unless he is just going to be a figurehead, you can't do it when you are the chief executive of a major state like Virginia with a budget mess," Gilmore said.

Kaine declined to respond to Gilmore, but he disputed suggestions that he will be under added pressure to defeat the GOP this fall.

"I would have already been under pressure . . . to have a good result for my party," Kaine said.

With Virginia's governors constitutionally limited to one term, the election of a successor can be a crucial validation for departing chief executives.

Going back until at least the 1970s, Virginia governors who are succeeded by a member of the same party have generally been viewed as having been successful in office. Those who are not, such as Gilmore, have more difficulty in crafting a positive narrative about their legacy.

At a Democratic fundraiser last month, Kaine vowed that he would campaign this fall as if his name were on the ballot.

Larry Sabato, a political science professor at the University of Virginia, said Kaine's standing on the national stage will now also be judged on whether he can deliver Virginia for the Democrats this fall.

"With any new position, there are risks and rewards, and one of the big risks here is he won't be able to deliver his state," Sabato said. "Much of his legacy is his political accomplishments, and his political legacy will be damaged" if a Republican wins the governor's mansion.

Three Democrats are vying for the nomination to face Robert F. McDonnell, the popular attorney general and likely GOP candidate.

But Kaine's new role may hamper Democrats' ability to win the governor's race. Since Warner won the governor's mansion in 2001, Virginia Democrats have succeeded by largely distancing themselves from the national party.

Because Kaine now represents the national party -- including Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress -- Republicans say it will be far harder for the eventual Democratic nominee to separate himself from events in Washington.

"We have lost some elections, but they have been because Democrats were claiming to be centrist," Griffith said. "This makes it easier for us to say, 'Look, he is a national Democrat.' "