The Washington Post is reporting that Virginia Governor Tim Kaine will take over Howard Dean's position as chairman of the Democratic National Committee. (Link)
Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine will become chairman of the Democratic National Committee later this month, serving as the top political messenger for Barack Obama's administration even while he finishes his final year in the governor's mansion, several sources said.
Kaine will lead the party from Richmond, VA on a part-time basis until 2010, when his term as Governor of Virginia comes to an end. Virginia does not allow its governors to serve successive terms.
Initially, Gov. Kaine rejected the idea of being DNC chair, saying that it would be incompatible with his job as governor. But apparently President-elect Obama leaned on Kaine to rethink his stance and take over the leadership of the party.
[S]ources said Obama returned to the idea late last month, pressuring Kaine to take the job.
For Obama, Kaine will be a true loyalist who can carry out the new president's political agenda during the upcoming battles over the economy, foreign policy, health care and the environment. Kaine was one of the very first governors to endorse Obama after forging a close relationship during Kaine's 2005 governor's race.
Kaine traveled frequently for Obama during the presidential campaign, serving as a willing attack dog for his candidate. On one cable news program, Kaine memorably said of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.): "He couldn't count high enough, apparently, to even know how many houses he owned."
With Tim Kaine as the titular head of the Democratic Party of Virginia, we have seen significant gains for the party. We retook control of the state Senate in 2007, went from two Republican Senators and an 8-3 deficit in the state's Congressional delegation to two Democratic Senators and a 6-5 edge in the Congressional delegation. Here's hoping he brings the same kind of success to the national party.