Kaine travel for DNC is detailed

From the beginning of March till the end of June, Gov. Timothy M. Kaine spent parts of 31 days outside Virginia in his capacity as chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

Kaine’s travel on behalf of the DNC was catalogued in a response by the Virginia State Police to a Freedom of Information Act request by the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

The request sought records of expenses incurred by the State Police Executive Protection Unit—which guards Kaine around the clock—when its officers traveled with the governor on DNC work.

Kaine took 14 separate out-of-state trips on DNC business from March 5 to June 30, according to a review of the expense summary. Some of the trips involved stops in multiple states. The security expenses for the trips totaled $7,515.59. The DNC is reimbursing the state for those expenses.

Only one trip—to California from April 12 to April 15—lasted more than three days. Six of the 31 days documented in the expense summary included a Saturday or Sunday.

As DNC chairman, Kaine also traveled to New York City, Chicago, Boston, Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Texas, Ohio, Kansas and Philadelphia. He made four trips to Washington for DNC events. Kaine’s security detail traveled by commercial airline on all the trips except for two Washington trips in which they traveled by auto.

The expenses for Kaine’s security detail included $3,563.21 on lodging, $3,687.10 for transportation and $265.28 on meals.

Neither the duration of time spent at each stop nor the specific, DNC purpose of Kaine’s out-of-state travel is detailed in the one-page Executive Protection Unit expense summary. But the governor has said he often conducts state business when out of town attending to his DNC duties.

The expense summary does not appear to include the regular trips taken by Kaine to the DNC office in Washington, where he said he spends roughly a half-day per week on party business, in conjunction with official state business he conducts in Northern Virginia on the same trips.

Documents obtained under a separate FOIA request list Kaine’s whereabouts on every day of 2009. Destinations range from Martinsville to Morocco.

Those documents indicate more than 40 trips to Washington. They do not, however, itemize when the governor was working on state business or DNC duties or was on personal time.

“The governor is engaged in state work every day,“ Kaine Communications Director Lynda Tran said in a statement accompanying the release of the documents to The Times-Dispatch and other media outlets.

Kaine’s administration recently rejected more specific requests for his personal schedule under FOIA, citing security and privacy concerns. The administration said precedent and state law establish that Kaine’s schedule is not subject to FOIA but that it released the documents in the interest of “transparency.“

“The governor has always responded to questions regarding his work and whereabouts and remains willing to respond to these inquiries,“ Tran said.

Traditionally, the state has borne all expenses for a Virginia governor’s security detail, regardless of whether it involves official state business. This included expenses incurred in protecting then-Gov. Jim Gilmore, who served as chairman of the Republican National Committee in 2001.

But this year, after criticism from state Republican leaders, Kaine announced he would break with the practice and have the party reimburse the state for his security costs related to his DNC travel. The DNC also picks up Kaine’s travel and expenses on party business.

In a radio interview, the governor called it “the right thing to do.“

The governor said he would provide an itemized accounting of the costs of protecting him on his DNC travels every six months until the end of his term in January.

Kaine became DNC chairman on Jan. 21 at the urging of President Barack Obama, the man he helped elect while serving as co-chairman of his national campaign. The governor agreed to take the job on a part-time, unpaid basis until he finishes his term.

The expense summary—which covers Jan. 1 to June 30—suggests Kaine did not leave the state on DNC business until March 5, just after the General Assembly had adjourned from its 46-day session.

But Kaine’s travel on behalf of the national party has picked up in recent weeks. Nine of his 14 documented trips occurred in May and June.

Last week, he spoke at a fundraiser in Aspen, Colo. This weekend, he is heading to Washington to address the National College Democrats.

Kaine said yesterday that he might be going to San Francisco and Seattle for the rest of the weekend. He said he will perform both DNC and gubernatorial duties when he addresses the Latino organization La Raza in Chicago next Tuesday.

Since assuming the DNC job, the governor has faced withering criticism from Republican leaders.

They have alleged that Kaine is neglecting the state during the recession to further the interests of his party. Kaine has rejected the claim and argued that his job as DNC chairman has paid dividends for the state in access and influence with decision-makers in Washington.

Contact Jim Nolan at (804) 649-6061 or .