Potential VP pick Tim Kaine took $160,000 worth of gifts in office: Report
Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine, a top potential vice president pick for Hillary Clinton, took $160,000 worth of legal gifts while in office, Politico reported.
Kaine accepted the gifts while serving as governor and lieutenant governor of Virginia, according to disclosures compiled by the Virginia Public Access Project and reported on by Politico.
The gifts, which came between 2001 to 2009, were mostly for travel to and from political events and conferences, according to the disclosures. However, he did receive an $18,000 Caribbean vacation, $5,500 in clothes and a trip to watch George Mason University play in the NCAA basketball tournament, Politico reported.
The gifts were all legal under Virginia's relatively relaxed gift laws, according to Politico, and a spokesperson defended the actions to Politico.
"During his eight years as lieutenant governor and governor, Sen. Kaine went beyond the requirements of Virginia law, even publicly disclosing gifts of value beneath the reporting threshold," a spokesperson told Politico. "He's confident that he met both the letter and the spirit of Virginia's ethical standards."
Kaine has generated chatter as a top potential choice to join Clinton's ticket, and finished second in a CNBC poll asking readers who Clinton should choose as her vice president.