Decision Virginia

Governor Tim Kaine is playing on a much different stage than he was a year ago at this time. The Virginia Governor was virtually unknown outside the Commonwealth and the decisions he made as a centrist Democrat could easily be measured by the public opinion polling within the state.

Not anymore.

Kaine has quickly become a national figure. It is a position he settled into after being seriously considered as Barack Obama’s running mate and is ensconced in as the chairman of the Democratic National Committee.  Kaine can no longer ride the moderate fence initially built by Mark Warner and expect there to be no repercussions. He may not be able to, but he is still going to try.

On Monday Kaine announced that he was going to sign into law a controversial proposal that would allow “Choose Life” license plates in Virginia. The plates were strongly pushed by the pro-life community and strongly opposed by the pro-choice lobby. Kaine has had a topsy-turvy relationship with the volatile abortion issue. He claims to be “personally opposed” to the concept, but has committed to accepting it as the law of the land. It is a delicate balance for a man who speaks openly about his Catholic faith. The Roman Catholic church is strictly opposed to abortion.

More about the challenge of being Governor and party chief as well as video of Kaine explaining his support for the bill after the jump..

Read the rest of this entry »