On political unicorns

Shortly after Hillary Clinton announced former governor of Virginia Tim Kaine as her veepstakes winner, the worried texts, Facebook posts and conversations started piling on:

“Just another boring white guy.”.

“He’s awful on reproductive rights.”

“Doesn’t Hillary owe Bernie supporters something?”

Chill out. Tim Kaine is fine, OK?

I get it—I really do: Another old white man! A Catholic for abstinence-only sex education! That push to deregulate big banks!

Clinton doesn’t “owe” anybody anything—that’s not how politics works. That’s not how life works. Issues are complicated. Politicians (who happen to be people) are complicated, too.

Besides, it’s reductive to dismiss Kaine wholesale based on some of his policy positions, past or present.

Yes, Kaine once advocated for abstinence-only sex education, but in 2007, citing studies, changed his stance. He has also spoken publicly about his commitment to a woman’s right to choose—and his voting record reflects that.

He also gets an F rating from the NRA, has a long history as a civil rights advocate and, although it took him awhile to get there, supports same sex marriage and LGBTQ rights.

Big picture, Tim Kaine is solid.

If you still can’t stomach voting for Hillary Clinton, fine. Good for you for sticking to your convictions, regardless of the possible outcome.

But, maybe it’s time to realize that there is no magical unicorn of a politician who is pure and untarnished, according to your very subjective definition of such.

There’s no such thing as a political savior, and it’s time to stop demanding one.