Clinton, Kaine Campaign As Running Mates For First Time

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton took the stage with running mate Sen. Tim Kaine for the first time since announcing him as her vice presidential pick telling a Miami crowd that he is "everything Donald Trump and Mike Pence are not."

The two walked arm and arm onto the stage at Florida International University, with Clinton taking the microphone first, explaining the factors that drove her to pick the Virginia senator. She announced him as her running mate via tweet Friday night.

"xxxxxxxx," Clinton said.

Clinton picked Kaine after evaluating 24 contenders, according to a campaign official. He was the only one of the contenders who met with Clinton twice. Clinton considered several potential candidates from different parts of the Democratic party including Senators Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Labor Secretary Tom Perez.

In Clinton's final meeting with Kaine, she invited him and his wife, Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton, to her Chappaqua home to have lunch with her, former President Bill Clinton, daughter Chelsea Clinton and Chelsea Clinton's husband, Marc, according to a campaign aide.

Clinton called Kaine at 7:32 pm Friday night to offer him the position. Kaine was at a fundraiser in Newport, Rhode Island. Shortly after he got the call, Kaine left the fundraiser. His former staffers and friends began celebrating in Richmond as the news was revealed.

A Clinton campaign official said that during her decision making process, Clinton kept reiterating her belief that Kaine could truly do the job. At the rally today at Florida International University, Clinton made the same point.

The senator and former Virginia governor was long viewed by pundits as one of the most qualified of the contenders on Clinton's list of VP candidates. While he endorsed President Obama in 2008, he was an early supporter of Clinton's 2016 presidential bid.