To commemorate the first anniversary of the signing on Obama’s stimulus bill, DNC chair and former Virginia governor Tim Kaine made more television appearances in one 24-hour cycle than it felt like he had during the entirety of his tenure before today. On occasion, Kaine had been showing up on MSNBC to remind everyone that someone was, indeed, in charge of the party despite the growing tide of Republican (and general right-wing) opposition, but his appearances were always overshadowed by Michael Steele telling someone to shut up, calling someone “baby” or, worse, winning an election. After waiting for so long, what did Kaine bring to the table at Fox and Friends, Morning Joe, and American Morning? The gameplan for victory Rachel Maddow gave him the night before.

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His statements on the morning programs were repeated almost verbatim across channels: the midterm elections will be tough but the Democrats have great candidates this time around, the stimulus is working, they will pass health care reform this year, and anyone who doesn’t believe the stimulus is working should see

how many Republicans are trying to take credit for the results of the stimulus despite voting against it.

If it sounds familiar, it’s because Maddow suggested to Kaine that emphasizing these exact points would lead his party to victory. “What Democrats need to do to win in the midterms,” she explained, “[is that] they need good candidates for open seats, they need to pass health reform, and they need to make sure everyone in the country– left, right and center– knows about Republican hypocrisy on policy,” to which Kaine replied “you pretty much nailed it.” He added the emphasis on economic improvement to that list, the only point he touched on this morning that did not come directly from Maddow.

Her final word of advice? “You should be on TV more.”

While it feels a little late for Kaine to start – where was he when Martha Coakley threw away the most consistently Democratic Senate seat in America? – it appears that may be the tip he takes most to heart from their meeting last night. Now if only he could turn himself into an animated .gif, the midterm elections would be a done deal for the Dems.

Watch Tim Kaine discuss party politics with Rachel Maddow below, and compare to the ideas in his morning appearances:
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