'A patriotic American': Kaine kicks off campaign tour by reassuring supporters about Biden

PETERSBURG, Va. - Sen. Tim Kaine told supporters Monday morning he was not putting much weight in calls for President Joe Biden to step away from a re-election bid following his less-than-stellar debate performance last week, adding that one of the best ways to quiet those calls is to work harder to make sure supporters show up at the polls.

Since Biden’s verbal stumbles during the June 27 debate with former president Donald Trump in Atlanta, questions have been raised about his mental competency due in part to his age (he will be 82 should he win the election and take office next January). At a post-debate rally in Raleigh , North Carolina , the following day that analysts rated as a much better performance, Biden admitted he may not walk, talk and debate as good as he used to, "but I know how to tell the truth."

Kaine – a Virginia Democrat who has firsthand national debate knowledge as Hillary Clinton's 2016 vice-presidential nominee – admitted that while the debate was not the president’s shining moment, the fact that he now is in office and wants to run again proves his willingness to lead the ticket into November.

“The bottom line is, Joe Biden is our president. He’s a patriotic American. He’s done a good job. He puts others first, not himself,” Kaine said during a roundtable discussion at Market Street Coffee in Petersburg. “He had one race that was an existential race in 2020 and he had to win it. He’s racked up a great record as president.”

Kaine was responding to a request from Petersburg Vice Mayor Darrin Hill to push colleagues to “turn down the noise” about calling for a pullout. The senator noted later that all those calls were not from Virginians. He also noted most of the Democratic elected leaders from Virginia remain steadfast behind Biden, regardless of Thursday's debate performance, at a later stop in Charles City.

“It’s the pundits. It’s the editorial writers,” he said. “Not one of those calls have come from Virginia.”

In an interview with The Progress-Index after the Petersburg appearance, Kaine was asked if he thinks talk about Biden stepping down will subside as the campaign continues.

“I suspect so,” he said, “but only if we do our job of being out in the field with a strong sell.”

He recalled his experience in his debate with his GOP counterpart Mike Pence in 2016 at Longwood College in Farmville.

“I didn’t have my best night,” Kaine said. “I had something I needed to get done, and I got that done. But people didn’t necessarily love it. A debate can go well, and a debate cannot go well.”

Kaine – being challenged for a third Senate term by Republican Hung Cao – kicked off his latest campaign swing across Virginia in a series of “Salute to Service” discussions supporting veterans and first-responders. After meeting with about 25 backers in Petersburg, he was on to similar events in Charles City and Henrico counties.

A path forward for Biden?

At a town-hall style event at Firehouse #2 in Charles City, the second stop on Kaine's "Salute to Service" tour Monday, a constituent asked the senator, "What do you think Joe Biden should do now?" after Thursday's debate.

"The campaign's going to do what the campaign's going to do, but I think, more settings where the president is interacting with everyday people and demonstrating that, that's his super power," Kaine responded.

In an P-I interview after the town hall concluded, Kaine said he doesn't think public turmoil surrounding Biden's debate performance is helping the party. As former chair of the Democratic National Committee from 2009 through 2011, he said Democrats do have a path forward: To focus on Biden's policy achievements.

"That Democrats are nervous and anxious, is nothing new," he said. "Things like this, they come and they go."

Other Virginia Democratic Party members in attendance included Dr. Yvonne Smith-Jones, Democratic chair in Charles City, Mike Hatfield Democratic chair in New Kent County, and Latonya Felton, Hopewell City Democratic chair.

Related: EXCLUSIVE: VA Senate candidate says he was 'blown up' in combat. His record doesn’t show that.

‘Don’t squander the opportunity’

Kaine’s tour comes days after the Commission on Presidential Debates announced it was cancelling its three-forum series that included an appearance Oct. 1 at Virginia State University. VSU stood to become the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to host a presidential debate, but that was jeopardized after the Biden campaign refused to commit to the schedule and agreed to only two televised debates – last Thursday’s and one in September to be hosted by ABC News.

Kaine said both he and colleague Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, have been pushing the White House to consider a VSU appearance in lieu of the debate ""and don’t squander the opportunity to do something positive."

“I really want Joe Biden to do something at Virginia State,” he said. Such an appearance, Kaine suggested, would play to Biden’s strong suit as an empathetic leader.

“President Biden, where he shines, is not at a rally with 100,000 people and it’s not on the debate stage,” Kaine said. “Where he shines is in a town hall meeting with regular people where he can really interact with them. That’s his superpowers, his empathy and his communication skills with everyday people.”

Nothing has been finalized about the possibility of a visit from Biden or Vice President Kamala Harris prior to the November election.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: 'A patriotic American': Kaine kicks off campaign tour by reassuring supporters about Biden