Sen. Kaine urges Hillary to seek presidency

Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia has endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, even though the former secretary of state has not announced whether she will seek the White House in 2016. Kaine, who backed Barack Obama when he beat Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, announced his support on Twitter and at breakfast meeting of the South Carolina Women’s Democratic Council in Columbia, South Carolina. “Today I encouraged Hillary Clinton to run for president and pledged my support for her candidacy if she does,” Kaine said in a tweet that linked to his remarks on www.readyforhillary.com, website of one of the most prominent pro-Clinton organisations. Kaine said Clinton’s work as secretary of state, senator from New York and first lady during her husband Bill Clinton’s presidency also give her a deep background on foreign policy. Polls taken this year show Clinton with an advantage of more than 50 percentage points over other potential Democratic candidates, including Vice President Joe Biden. Clinton said in April she was thinking about running in 2016 and was 'going to continue to think about it for a while,' according to a news agency.