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WASHINGTON, May 3 (UPI) -- Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has yet to formally announce any plans to run for president in 2016, but that won't deter Sen Tim Kaine, D-Va., from issuing an endorsement.

Secretary Hillary Clinton is the best person to be our 45th President for many reasons, Kaine will say in prepared remarks shown in advance to CNN. She is a classic American optimist with the background and experiences necessary to lead this country in a very complicated world.

Speaking later today at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in South Carolina, Kaine will endorse Clinton's still-assumed presidential bid, joining fellow Senator Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and the pro-Clinton super PAC Ready For Hillary in the former first lady's camp.

Kaine's endorsement carries added historic weight as he was among the first politicians to endorse then-Senator Barack Obama over establishment favorite Clinton in the 2007 Democratic primaries.

I sure hope a lot of folks will make plain to her that as she's trying to decide, 'Hey, if you run, we're all behind you. I really hope people do that. But I don't have any illusion that it'll just be a one-candidate race. Competition isn't bad, and there might be some competition.

The Jefferson-Jackson Dinner is an annual event held by the South Carolina Democratic party.

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Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia endorses Hillary Clinton for president

Hillary Clinton will receive a full-throated endorsement for president Saturday from Sen. Tim...

Hillary Clinton will receive a full-throated endorsement for president Saturday from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., in South Carolina, a key early primary state.

Clinton, who has acknowledged she is weighing whether to run for president, has not yet declared her intention. But Kaine, speaking in Columbia on Saturday, will nevertheless offer his stamp of approval, calling Clinton a "classic American optimist with the background and experiences necessary to lead this country in a very complicated world."

"Our country will have no shortage of challenges to tackle in the future. ... And the very list of challenges on the table tells us who the next president should be," Kaine is expected to say Saturday at a South Carolina Womens Democratic Council breakfast. "Thats why I stand with you today to encourage Hillary Clinton to run, to pledge my support for her candidacy if she does and to ask you to make that same pledge."

The early, prominent show of support for Clinton could be politically important to Kaine, who did not back Clinton in her last bid for president. When he was Virginia's governor, Kaine officially endorsed then-Sen. Barack Obama for president in February 2007, but told Obama privately much sooner, in 2006, that he intended to back him over Clinton.

"I made my decision early because I knew something he was the right person for the job, but getting there would be hard," Kaine plans to say. "And I figured that the sooner I started helping him in Virginia, the more helpful I would be."

"Im stating my support for Hillary Clinton today for the same reason," he will add. "Shes the right person for the job."

Kaine also will urge support for Ready for Hillary, the super PAC that has been working to build a nationwide network of Clinton's supporters.

Kaine was in South Carolina to keynote the annual South Carolina Jefferson Jackson Dinner, a major event on the Democratic Party's calendar in the state that usually draws presidential hopefuls.

In November, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., used a similar speech at an Iowa Democratic dinner to endorse Clinton and urge her to run.

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Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine endorses Hillary Clinton, Ready For Hillary in South Carolina

WASHINGTON (CNN) Virginia Sen. Tim Kaines trip to South Carolina this weekend to address the state Democratic Partys Jefferson-Jackson Dinner comes with dash of 2016 presidential intrigue.

A Spanish-fluent former Democratic Party chairman and one-time governor from an emergent swing state in the South, Kaines understated political skills and sterling reputation among party insiders would make him an instantly credible White House candidate, if a dark horse.

Of course, thats if Hillary Clinton doesnt run. And Kaine will make it known on Saturday that he plans to support to Clinton in 2016 if she decides to embark on a White House bid, according to Democrats familiar with his plans.

Kaine is to announce at a South Carolina Womens Democratic Council breakfast in Columbia that he is joining Ready for Hillary, a pro-Clinton Super PAC thats been laying political groundwork for the former Secretary of State should she seek the 2016 nomination. Hes also set to deliver a short speech extolling Clintons qualifications for the White House.

Secretary Hillary Clinton is the best person to be our 45th President for many reasons, Kaine will say, according to prepared remarks provided to CNN. She is a classic American optimist with the background and experiences necessary to lead this country in a very complicated world.

Kaine was one of Barack Obamas first public supporters, and one of few top-tier Democrats to oppose Clinton, after Obama announced his upstart presidential campaign in 2007.

I was and am proud that I was an early supporter of our great President, Kaine will say on Saturday. I made my decision early because I knew somethinghe was the right person for the job but getting there would be hard. And I figured that the sooner I started helping him in Virginia, the more helpful I would be.

Im stating my support for Hillary Clinton today for the same reason, he will say. Shes the right person for the job.

If Clinton decides not to run, Kaine will be making the most of his South Carolina jaunt with a packed political schedule that will introduce him to key Democrats in the state.

Along with the breakfast and the J-J Dinner, Kaine attended Rep. Jim Clyburns annual Fish Fry, a casual yearly meet-and-greet for Democratic activists and officials, on Friday evening in Columbia.

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Tim Kaine to endorse Hillary Clinton for president unless

WASHINGTON - Senator Tim Kaine of Virginia on Saturday endorsed Hillary Clinton for president, even though the former secretary of state has not announced whether she will seek the White House in 2016.

Kaine, who backed Barack Obama when he beat Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, announced his support on Twitter and at breakfast meeting of the South Carolina Women's Democratic Council in Columbia, South Carolina.

"Today I encouraged Hillary Clinton to run for president & pledged my support for her candidacy if she does," Kaine said in a tweet that linked to his remarks on http://www.readyforhillary.com, website of one of the most prominent pro-Clinton organizations.

"She understands the challenges facing Americans from all walks of life and has the compassion and skill necessary to help improve our everyday lives," Kaine, former governor of Virginia,

said in remarks prepared for the breakfast meeting, according to the website.

Kaine added Clinton's work as secretary of state, senator from New York and first lady during her husband Bill Clinton's presidency also give her a deep background on foreign policy.

Polls taken this year show Clinton with an advantage of more than 50 percentage points over other potential Democratic candidates, including Vice President Joe Biden.

Clinton said in April she was thinking about running in 2016 and was "going to continue to think about it for a while."

Last year Democratic Senators Claire McCaskill of Missouri and Charles Schumer of New York publicly announced their support for Clinton and the 16 Democratic women in the Senate also sent her a letter urging her to enter the race. Reuters

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US senator urges Hillary Clinton to seek presidency

Hillary Clinton #39;s Smartest Move: Becoming Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton #39;s Smartest Move Becoming Secretary of State.

By: 2016 Hillary Clinton Watch

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Hillary Clinton's Smartest Move: Becoming Secretary of State - Video