Minimal credit only. Politically for Kaine to have granted clemency would have been suicide. There is no way that was ever going to happen, even with the most anti-death penalty pol.
It’s not as if Muhammed went to a single location and wiped out 10 people, as horrific a crime as that would be. Oh, nooooooooooooooooo, he terrorized millions of people in VA/DC/MD over weeks. I was one of them. If the crime hadn’t affected so many constituents, Kaine might at least have considered clemency. Both as governor and as DNC Chairman, it was unthinkable.
What you’re saying may be true, but I give him more credit than that. He’s been pretty consistent on the issue of the death penalty over his term.