Tim Kaine Hopes To Find A Spirit Of Collaboration In Senate

U.S. Senator-elect Tim Kaine has a hefty agenda ahead of him, and it includes getting his colleagues to set aside the partisan politics that have plagued Washington, he told reporters Wednesday.

Now that the election is over, Kaine says, his role is to help his future colleagues get the country's fiscal house in order by avoiding deep sequestration cuts or forcing the expiration of all of the Bush-era tax cuts. He believes he can do this by advocating a set of compromises on both sides of the political aisle

"I can see from some of the folks that were elected and some of the spirit coming out of last night that I have many future colleagues who I believe will want to embrace a different path," Kaine said Wednesday. "A path that's frankly more true to the origin of the senate and work together to tackle some of these big challenges." 

Kaine said during the campaign that he thinks the tax cuts for those making more than $500,000 dollars should expire. He's also looking forward to partnering with Senator Mark Warner, who has already established bipartisan relationships in the Senate, Kaine. 

The new senator is concerned, however, that Warner has aspirations to be a Virginia governor for a second time. Warner served as governor from 2006 to 2009, and did not run again due to term limits. In the commonwealth, governors cannot run for reelection in a consecutive term but can serve one more term later.