In Miami, Hillary Clinton is introducing her running mate, Tim Kaine. Livestream above.

Clinton highlighting Kaine’s accomplishments, particularly in education. “He fights for the people he represents and he gets results,” she says. Lots of commentators noting that she is actually introducing Kaine (as opposed to Trump, who simply talked about himself with Mike Pence nearby). 

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“Behind that smile, Tim also has a backbone of steel,” she says. “Just ask the NRA. Over and over again he has had the courage to stand up to the gun lobby in their own backyard.” She also highlights Kaine’s voting record on reproductive rights, immigration reform, criminal justice reform, and LGBT rights. It’s a policy-heavy speech, befitting a ticket pairing two wonky, results-oriented politicians.

Clinton also goes after Trump’s assertion that he is the only one who can save us.

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“We do this work together,” she says, and implies that Trump’s rhetoric is that of authoritarians and dictators. 

Kaine opens his speech in Spanish (and continues to sprinkle in throughout), mentions his Marine son deploying to Europe to help NATO allies (note the contrast to Trump threatening to abandon commitments to NATO allies), and shows off his mastery of playing the smiling attack dog. He has a real knack for going hard after Trump while sticking to the sunny, hopeful script. 

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Kaine tells his story of growing up in Kansas, where his father ran a small, union-organized ironworking shop. Talks up his Jesuit education and Catholic upbringing, which he says pushed him toward an interest in social justice.

Hillary Clinton is the opposite of Trump, Kaine says: “She doesn’t insult people, she listens to him.” 

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You can see the picture that the Clinton campaign is trying to paint in contrast to the Trump campaign — competent, hopeful, working together as opposed to fear-mongering, bleak, erratic, and authoritarian.

Kaine says that he is Catholic and Clinton is Methodist but their credo is the same: “Do all the good you can.” 

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While Kaine is thought of as a boring pick, it’s worth noting that he’s not boring. He’s a terrific public speaker — natural, funny, optimistic, relateable, fluent, and likeable. He’s both sharp and emotionally resonant. Will his nomination swing the election one way or the other? Surely not. But he’s good at this. 

Kaine’s closing pitch: “Do you want a ‘You’re Fired’ president or a ‘You’re Hired’ president?’ Do you want a trash-talking president or a bridge-building president? Do you want a me-first president or a kids-and-families-first president?”

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