Politics

Tim Kaine critical of presidential hopeful Perry

Alec Jacobs Contributor
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Tim Kaine, former Democratic National Committee chairman and past Virginia governor, told public radio station WAMU Texas Gov. Rick Perry is “far too polarizing” to win the White House.

“My sense about Gov. Perry is that I think he’s far too polarizing to bring America together and find common ground on the issues,” Kaine said. “I think his flirting with ideas of secession, throwing around that kind of language, isn’t going to play [well] with Virginians, especially not [with] Virginia independents.” (Pro-Perry PAC poll finds Perry leading in Iowa)

Kaine also challenged Perry’s record on the economy, saying he’d “put the Virginia economy up against Texas’ any day. I don’t think the Texas model is one the nation is going to grab onto and say, ‘we want to be more like Texas.’”

He also accused Perry of being divisive during his tenure as Texas’ chief executive.

Despite slamming Perry, the interview wasn’t all doom and gloom. Kaine, who’s running for the U.S. Senate in Virginia, was confident in his own ability to win in 2012. He also believes Obama will win re-election.

“I expect that he is going to win, and I’m going to win, too … But certainly the president doing well is important to me, and me doing well is important to the presidential race in Virginia.”