"Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s text message at 3:20 a.m. Saturday announcing that he had chosen Joe Biden of Delaware as his running mate sent politicos across Virginia into a tizzy.

A University of Virginia political expert called Biden an “acceptable pick,” though certainly not the bombshell that many Democrats had wanted.

Republican John McCain’s top campaign officials in the state called the selection “puzzling.”

And Gov. Timothy M. Kaine praised Obama’s choice in a statement, saying that Biden is a “committed public servant, has a proven track record and understands the complex challenges facing our nation.”

Kaine, a Richmond Democrat who was a finalist for Obama’s vice-presidential slot, said that Biden — who has served in the U.S. Senate since 1973 — underscores Obama’s message of change.

“While families across America are looking for results and solutions-oriented leaders, Senator John McCain offers more of the same failed policies of the last eight years,” Kaine said in the statement. “The Obama-Biden ticket offers Americans a clear choice and a real opportunity for change.”

Larry J. Sabato, director of UVa’s Center for Politics, said Biden was not Obama’s perfect choice, but there is rarely ever a perfect choice when it comes to VP candidates.

“It’s an acceptable pick,” Sabato said. “It’s not a game-changer, but vice-presidential picks are almost never game-changers.”

Biden helps complement Obama’s resume, Sabato said, particularly in the area of foreign policy experience.

Biden is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is familiar with heads of state around the world. Plus, Sabato added, Biden is an aggressive campaigner who will carry the burden of attacking McCain on Obama’s behalf.

“He’ll be the attack dog,” Sabato said.

Sabato said that he expects McCain will choose a similarly forceful running mate to play a similar role against Obama. Such a candidate, Sabato said, could be Mitt Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts.

While Biden might be seen as a safe pick, his selection carries risk for Obama, Sabato said. Stories of Biden’s past alleged plagiarism — in a 1987 speech and a law review article while attending Syracuse Law School — are certainly going to re-emerge. And Biden harshly criticized Obama during the hard-fought Democratic primary, saying that Obama lacked the experience to be president.

McCain’s campaign launched a new TV ad Saturday morning that touts Biden’s past statements about Obama. Also in the ad, a clip from “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” shows Biden praising McCain.

“Thirty-six years in the Senate. Tens of thousands of votes cast. And, in Biden’s case, millions of words spoken,” Sabato said. “There’s a lot out there for Republicans to work with.”

Sabato said the vice-presidential picks are not likely to have a huge impact on the results of the Nov. 4 election. After the political conventions, he said, the focus will be back to Obama vs. McCain, no matter who their running mates might be.

As for Kaine, Sabato said, his time on the national stage is hardly over. If Obama wins the White House, he said, Kaine will “almost certainly” be offered a prominent position in the Cabinet.

“Obama probably wouldn’t ask him to be transportation secretary, but he’d be a natural attorney general,” Sabato said. “If Obama’s elected, Kaine has a decision to make.”

In a Saturday morning conference call with reporters, McCain’s Virginia campaign co-chairs, Del. Chris Saxman, R-Staunton, and former Attorney General Jerry Kilgore, said Obama’s choice of running mates will not help him win in Virginia.

“It was kind of a puzzling selection,” Saxman said, going on to cite Biden’s statements earlier this year that criticized Obama and that said he was disinterested in the job.

Kilgore added that picking a running mate with three decades of service in Washington makes it seem unlikely that an Obama-Biden ticket would bring any real changes.

“All this talk about change over the last year and here he picks the ultimate Washington insider,” Kilgore said." (Brian McNeill, The Daily Progress, August 23, 2008)