Small-town reporter, big time governor

I recently had a unique experience with open government.

It started Tuesday when a fellow reporter asked if anyone wanted to cover Gov. Tim Kaine’s Cabinet Community Day in Fredericksburg on Wednesday. After learning about the Culpeper connection, I volunteered for the job.

Plus, I thought, it would be neat to see the governor and see how he interacts with the public.

During a brief conversation with Kaine’s assistant press secretary, I learned I would get 15 minutes to ask the governor any questions during a brief trip between two scheduled destinations.

I must admit I was a little intimidated. It’s not every day I get to ask the governor and chairman of the Democratic National Committee anything I want.

Adding to my paranoia, I only had a day’s notice to prepare questions and figure out what to wear. So I sent an e-mail to my co-workers, asking if they had any suggestions.

Luckily, they did.

Some I can’t repeat, others were right on target.

Since I cover the education beat and was attending a School Board meeting that Tuesday evening, I asked a longtime member what she’d like to ask Gov. Kaine.

She eagerly submitted a question without hesitation.

Armed with a handful of questions and appropriate business attire, I drove to the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank to meet with the governor and his extensive entourage. After spending about 30 minutes at the Food Bank, Kaine was ready for his next stop.

That’s when he asked if I was the reporter who would be riding with him to Rappahannock Goodwill Industries.

Yep.

So we climbed into his black Chevy Suburban. In the front seat, there were two undercover state troopers; Gov. Kaine and I sat in the middle row, and his assistant press secretary and personal photographer sat in the rear row.

With a huge grin, I asked if I was the only reporter traveling with him. That’s when his assistant quickly brought me back down to Earth, informing me that I was the fourth person to get one-on-one time with the governor that day.

Not exactly what I imagined. I was thinking that I’d be in some stretch limo with other reporters, jockeying for position to get my questions answered.

We’ve witnessed this scene several times where a police chief, investigating a murder case, steps up to several microphones to give updates to the media and the battle ensues after he’s concluded his statement.

So glad that wasn’t the case.

There was one moment where I felt a little stressed. It was as soon as we got into his SUV and I was prepared to ask my first question.

But the governor wasn’t ready yet. He had to check his cell phone messages first. As I waited patiently for his full attention, I noticed that the vehicle had started to move and the clock was a tickin’.

I knew the trip was quick and my time was limited.

Meanwhile, he was ready in a manner of seconds. But it felt like an eternity to me.

After plowing through my questions, we — or better yet I — felt a little more relaxed, so we continued to chat for a bit.

Kaine asked how long I’d been with the paper and what beat I cover. At the end of our conversation, he said it was a pleasure to meet me.

That’s when I instinctively corrected him. I reminded him that I traveled to Richmond in 2006 to cover his congratulatory speech to the Destination ImagiNation global winners from Culpeper.

He was like, “Oh, yeah. We met in my cabinet conference room.”

I’m sure he vaguely remembered.