Why I Won’t Miss Russert on Meet The Press
By Larry Johnson
Email: larry_johnson@earthlink.net
Site: http://NoQuarterUSA.net
About: Larry C. Johnson is a former analyst at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, who moved subsequently in 1989 to the U.S. Department of State, where he served four years as the deputy director for transportation security, antiterrorism assistance training, and special operations in the State Department's Office of Counterterrorism. He left government service in October 1993 and set up a consulting business. He currently is the co-owner and CEO of BERG Associates, LLC (Business Exposure Reduction Group) and is an expert in the fields of terrorism, aviation security, and crisis and risk management, and money laundering investigations. Johnson is the founder and main author of No Quarter, a weblog that addresses issues of terrorism and intelligence and politics. NoQuarterUSA was nominated as Best Political Blog of 2008.[1] He has worked as a private consultant on issues of international terrorism and security for the U.S. Government and private companies. Johnson has appeared as a consultant and commentator in many major newspapers and news programs.[2]
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Views
2.1 1996
2.2 1998
2.3 1999
2.4 2000
2.5 2001
2.6 2003
2.6.1 Plame affair
2.7 2008
3 Notes
4 References
5 External links
[edit]Background
Larry Johnson moved to Washington, D.C. in 1979 to begin work on a Ph.D. at the American University. Although he completed successfully all coursework and comprehensive exams, he did not write a dissertation. In 1978 and in 1983-85 he worked in Latin America on community development projects as a community organizer. Returning to the United States in 1985 he joined the Central Intelligence Agency, thanks in part to a letter of recommendation from Republican Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) that helped to "open doors" for him at the Agency.[3] Johnson entered on duty at the CIA in September 1985 and was a classmate of Valerie Plame. Every member of that class was undercover. After a year in the Career Trainee program, which included a stint with the Afghan Task Force, Johnson was assigned as an analyst in the Middle America Caribbean Division in the Latin American Affairs Office of the Directorate of Intelligence. He received two Exceptional Performance awards and was promoted ultimately to Senior Regional Analyst for Central America.
Johnson remained undercover in the CIA until October 1989, when he resigned from the CIA and started a new job in the Office of Counter Terrorism at the Department of State. Johnson played an instrumental role in launching the Terrorism Rewards program international advertising campaign (working with Diplomatic Security officers Brad Smith and Michael Parks). [4] Johnson also was involved in a variety of crisis management response operations, including the release of hostages from Lebanon and liaison with the Pan Am 103 families. He left government service in October 1993 and started his own business as a consultant.
After leaving government service, Johnson became a frequent guest on many major television news shows when a question of terrorism came up. He was first interviewed by CNN following the capture of Carlos the Jackal. Johnson subsequently appeared on CNN, ABC's Nightline, CBS, the BBC, MSNBC, the Jim Lehrer News Hour, NBC, and NPR. In December of 1999, for example, Johnson was hired by NBC to serve as its terrorist expert for the Y2000 and was in Time Square with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric ("a lot of fun and the best way to see in the New Year"). Johnson also was hired in January 2002 as a Fox News Analyst and remained under contract until February 2003.
Since 1994 a significant focus of Johnson's consulting work has been with the U.S. military special operations forces in scripting and conducting military counter terrorism exercises. He traveled under orders from the U.S. military to Iraq in May 2006 to work on a short term project.
A registered Republican who supported President Bush in 2000, Johnson became a strong critic of the Bush administration in May 2003 for its conduct of the war in Iraq and, a few months later, for its role in the outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame.[5] He was also featured in the 2004 political documentary Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism. Since Robert Novak's controversial disclosure of Valerie Plame as a CIA operative in July 2003, Johnson has contributed to public discourse on intelligence matters, often sparking further controversy. He has been interviewed by both the mass media and the alternative media and published commentaries on a variety of issues, including the Plame affair, the controversy concerning Mary McCarthy, and the resignation of Porter Goss as Director of Central Intelligence.
[edit]Views
This article or section may contain an inappropriate mixture of prose and timeline.
Please help convert this timeline into prose or, if necessary, a list.
[edit]1996
In 1996, Johnson noted that terrorism worldwide was on the decline. "Terrorist incidents [both internationally and in the US] have fallen to levels not seen since the 1970s. Whether measured by the number of incidents, the number of fatalities, or the number of groups, raw statistics demonstrate that the level of terrorist violence has declined since the mid-1980s. In fact, the evidence suggests terrorism was more widespread and deadly 10 years ago."[6]
He also wrote an op-ed piece for the New York Times suggesting that the newer and more deadly terrorist threat to the U.S. was embodied by "networks of terrorists, mostly foreign, working within its borders." Exemplifying this threat was Ramzi Yousef, one of the masterminds behind the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center. In the article, Johnson suggests that enhanced cooperation between intelligence agencies, particularly the FBI and CIA, is mandatory to meet the growing threat of terror networks.[7]
[edit]1998
In 1998, Johnson argued that while overall terrorism was declining, the threat from bin Laden and al-Qaeda should be the focus of American counterterrorism policy:
The nature of the threat posed by Bin Ladin is highlighted by my final chart, number 7. Osama Bin Ladin and individuals associated with him have killed and wounded more Americans than any other group. This chart also illustrates that groups such as Hamas and the Tamil Tigers (LTTE) prior to 1998 have killed more foreigners in the anti-US terrorist attacks. If we take into account the bombings of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Osama's status as the most lethal terrorist is certain.[8]
In addition, he told USA Today that bin Laden had participated in "virtually every major attack of terrorism against the United States" in the 1990s. Johnson underlined the threat posed by bin Laden, saying that he was possessed by "hatred and craziness." If left unanswered, "he would continue to terrorize Americans around the world. He has no compunction about killing women and children. He's a complete egalitarian in his murderous attitude."[9]
[edit]1999
In an interview with PBS's Frontline for its 1999 program, Hunting bin Laden, Johnson discussed Osama bin Laden.[10] According to Johnson, Americans had "tended to make Osama bin Laden sort of a superman in Muslim garb." "Actually," he continues, "Osama bin Laden, in my view, represents more of a symptom of a problem, and the problem is this: the Saudi Arabian government, not just Osama bin Laden but many people in Saudi Arabia, have been sending money to radical Islamic groups for years." Johnson continued:
When you look at who's killed Americans in the last 10 years, the individuals he's supported and backed--I'm basing that upon the initial information that's been released in the indictments and conversations with others in the intelligence communities--Osama bin Laden has been the one killing Americans. No other terrorist group in the world has been out killing Americans except for Osama bin Laden.... Osama bin Laden remains out there as the one really targeting us. So, we recognize that he's the threat. He's serious about wanting to kill Americans, but as long as he's in Afghanistan, as long as he doesn't have access to a cell phone, as long as he can't just hop on a plane and travel wherever he wants without fear of being arrested, his ability to plan and conduct terrorist operations is extremely limited. We have to recognize [that] he would like to do a lot of damage. He would like to kill Americans, but wanting to is different from being able to, having the full capabilities in place.[11]
In the interview, Johnson doubted the ability of members of bin Laden's organization to plan and put their lives on the line:
There's not another Ali or Mustafa out there at this point and Osama bin Laden in my view has not been a very effective organizer or leader. He talks a great game and puts out terrific threats as far as stirring the passions in the United States and maybe firing up the imaginations of some young Muslims throughout the world. But when push comes to shove, can he get a group of people who are together who will say: we are going to plan an operation, we're going to put our lives on the line, we're going to go out and try and kill people and we don't care what the consequence is? It hasn't happened.[12]
Frontline asked:
[Is it] ... fair to say what you're saying is that the president of the United States, his national security advisor, his deputy national security advisor for counter-terrorism, are basically blowing smoke [about the danger posed by bin Laden] and his followers]?
Johnson responded:
They're grossly exaggerating the problem. They are hyping it. They shouldn't be talking about rising terrorism. Instead of saying "terrorism's rising," it's not. "Terrorism is spreading," it's not. "More people are dying from terrorism," not the case. But what they should be saying is, "There's one individual out there that really doesn't like us, and he's made it his mission in life to kill Americans, and we've gotta deal with him." But we need to have a voice of reason in that process instead of putting ourselves out crying wolf, because this is essentially what's taking place right now. They call it the administration that cries wolf.[12]
[edit]2000
Johnson co-authored an article in 2000 with Milt Bearden which focused on the threat posed by al-Qaeda specifically, rather than terrorism trends in general. Beardon and Johnson note that new information emerging about the bombings at Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 points to the threat posed by Imad Mugniyah and Osama Bin Laden will require "a coordinated policy that will employ a full range of covert, clandestine, diplomatic, and military operations," concluding:
The Clinton Administration has shot its bolt on the terrorist problem with small effect, and no last minute show of force will change the record. A new administration can start afresh with a more sharply defined set of terrorism goals – Mughniyeh and bin Laden and their protectors for starters – and bring the full, coordinated force of American diplomatic, military, and intelligence capabilities to bear on the problem.[13]
[edit]2001
After Johnson's testimony to the special forum at the U.S. Senate, Gary J. Schmitt, executive director and CEO of the Project for the New American Century, refers in the Daily Standard (blog) to an op-ed piece Johnson wrote two months prior to the 9/11 attacks, claiming that Johnson argued that the US had little to fear from terrorism.[14]
In an editorial entitled "The Declining Terrorist Threat," published in the New York Times on 10 July 2001, Johnson says:
Judging from news reports and the portrayal of villains in our popular entertainment, Americans are bedeviled by fantasies about terrorism. They seem to believe that terrorism is the greatest threat to the United States and that it is becoming more widespread and lethal. They are likely to think that the United States is the most popular target of terrorists. And they almost certainly have the impression that extremist Islamic groups cause most terrorism.... None of these beliefs are based in fact.... While terrorism is not vanquished, in a world where thousands of nuclear warheads are still aimed across the continents, terrorism is not the biggest security challenge confronting the United States, and it should not be portrayed that way.[15]
Ten days after the 9/11 attacks, after quoting the above passage, Timothy Noah concludes a post in his "Chatterbox" feature at Slate: "Johnson's analysis, we now see, was bold, persuasive, and 100 percent wrong."[16] Johnson defended himself against such attacks:
The rightwing is resurrecting an op-ed I wrote in July 2001. I stand by the full article. It is still relevant today. I am accused, incorrectly, of ignoring the threat of terrorism. In fact, I correctly noted that the real threat emanated from Bin Laden and Islamic extremism. President Bush, for his part, ignored the CIA warning in August 2001 that Al Qaeda was posed to strike inside the United States.[17]
After September 11, Johnson appeared several times on FOX News to address the question of military action against terrorism. On 14 November, he defended the FBI's proposal to interview 5,000 students in the U.S. suspected of having information relevant to the September 11 investigations:
I think they should talk to everyone that they feel they have a need to talk to. I mean, look, this is war. This is not a legal proceeding. This isn't the O.J. Simpson trial. The folks that attacked us -- they murdered Americans. And we've got to recognize that in wartime, we should do things differently.[18]
[edit]2003
In January 2003, Johnson wrote an analysis of the relationship between the upcoming U.S. invasion of Iraq and the threat of transnational terrorism. According to Johnson, Bremer's response was to tell him that "it didn't matter what Saddam did or didn't do, we were going to war."[19] The paper warned that an invasion would "do little to destroy the infrastructure of radical Islamic terrorism responsible for the 9-11 attacks." Noting that Saddam Hussein's regime has been a longtime supporter of regional terrorist organizations such as the PLO, Johnson examines contacts between Saddam Hussein and transnational terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda:
There is no doubt that Iraq is a state sponsor of terrorism—i.e., a country that provides financial support, safe haven, training, or weapons and explosives to groups or individuals that carry out terrorist attacks. . . . According to Central Intelligence Agency data, there is no credible evidence implicating Iraq in any mass casualty terrorist attacks since 1991. . . .
Johnson notes that the period immediately leading up to 2003 saw a rise of activity surrounding terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, suggesting that "Iraq is willing to help a movement that it would otherwise oppose on ideological grounds. Nonetheless," Johnson concludes, "it is important to understand that Iraqi entreaties to Al Qaeda, are most likely intended as a tactic to bolster Iraq’s ability to fight off a U.S. invasion rather than a deep-seated theological and ideological commitment to the terrorist agenda of Bin Laden.[20]
In that analysis Johnson also warns that the U.S.-led invasion was likely to backfire:
In fact there is a serious risk that a U.S. led war against Iraq may crystallize the diffused anger in the Arab and Muslim world — a heretofore unattained goal of bin Laden and his followers — and persuade more Muslim youths to take up the terrorist banner against America and her citizens.... If we decide to invade Iraq we must be prepared for the contingency that our attack will inspire young Muslims to pursue jihad against the West in general and the United States in particular. Just as the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan rallied many Muslims, especially young adults to the cause of jihad, a U.S. attack may enable Islamic extremists to attract new followers.[20]
Johnson also gave interviews on the topic of what to do with captured al-Qaeda leaders; while he did not condone torture, he suggested that a "sleep deprivation and reward system" might be useful for getting information from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed:
I don't see a constitutional right to have eight hours of sleep. You shouldn't subject someone to freezing but they don't get to wear mink coats, either.[21]
In May 2003, Johnson joined members of Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS) in condemning the manipulation of intelligence for political purposes:
It is a misuse and abuse of intelligence. The president was being misled. He was ill served by the folks who are supposed to protect him on this. Whether this was witting or unwitting, I don't know, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.[22]
[edit]Plame affair
After Robert Novak wrote a column identifying the wife of former ambassador Joseph C. Wilson as a CIA officer, the media invited Johnson to comment on the ensuing scandal because he had been a member of the same Career Trainee class with Valerie Plame Wilson. For example, in October 2003, he appeared on Democracy Now to discuss the Plame affair. He told interviewer Amy Goodman that Valerie Wilson's cover should have been respected whether she was an "analyst" or a "cleaning lady": "if she's undercover she's undercover, period. If the media allows themselves to get distracted with those kinds of curve balls, they ignore the issue."[23]
He told a Senate Democratic Policy Committee in October 2003, "My classmates and I have been betrayed. Together, we have kept the secrets of each other's identities a secret for 18 years. Each and every one of us have kept that secret, whether we were in the CIA, in other government service or in the private sector. But this issue is not just about a blown cover. It is about the destruction of the very essence, the core of human intelligence collection activities: plausible deniability, apparently, for partisan domestic political reasons."[24]
Johnson testified at a special joint hearing of Congressional and Senate Democrats on 22 July 2005 about the consequences arising from the Plame affair.[25]
[edit]2008
In 2008, Johnson emerged as a staunch supporter of Hillary Clinton and a strong critic of Barack Obama. Larry Johnson's blog, NoQuarterUSA, became a rally point for Clinton supporters wary of Barack Obama's qualifications to be president. Supporters of Barack Obama insist that a story that first appeared on Johnson's blog--a report that Republican operatives have a tape of Michelle Obama making racially insenstive comments about caucasians--has been "refuted" Barack Obama's Fight the Smears website.[26]. However, Johnson never claimed to have the tape and reported that the Republican operatives controlling it intended to release the tape sometime after the Democratic Convention in August 2008. On October 21, however, he asserted that the operative in possession of the tape had been instructed by the McCain campaign not to release it.[27]
[edit]Notes
^ http://2008.weblogawards.org/polls/best-political-coverage/
^ Larry C. Johnson, "About Me," No Quarter (personal blog).
^ "Former CIA Official Larry Johnson Delivers Democratic Radio Address," transcript posted on official Democratic National Committee's website for The Democratic Party, July 23, 2005], accessed November 21, 2006.
^ Interview with Larry Johnson, confirmed by his supervisor
^ "Ex-CIA official Blasts Bush on Leak of Operative's Name: Democrats' Radio Address Focuses on White House Aides' Role," CNN July 23, 2005, accessed November 21, 2006.
^ Gail Russell Chaddock, "Why Terrorists Pick On the French," Christian Science Monitor (5 December 1996) p. 1.
^ Larry Johnson, "Terrorists Among Us," New York Times (20 August 1996) p. A19.
^ Terrorism Today
^ Lee Michael Katz, "The Hunt for Bin Laden," USA Today (21 August 1998) p. 1A.
^ See Transcript of original interview with Larry C. Johnson, as broadcast on Frontline in 1999. Cf. "Interview: Larry C. Johnson," for Hunting bin Laden, transcript of interview broadcast on Frontline subsequently on 13 April 2001. See also dedicated PBS webpages for media links: Iraq and the War on Terror, Frontline PBS, online featured programs, accessed 19 November 2006.
^ frontline: hunting bin laden: interviews: larry c. johnson | PBS
^ a b [1].
^ As posted in [2].
^ Gary Schmitt, [ 07/25/2005 "Meet Larry Johnson: The CIA official Turned Democratic Spokesman Has a Pre-9/11 Mindset," Daily Standard (blog), July 25, 2005, accessed November 20, 2006.
^ *Larry C. Johnson, "The Declining Terrorist Threat," The New York Times 10 July 2001: A19.
^ Timothy Noah, "(Not Exactly a) Whopper of the Week: Larry C. Johnson," Chatterbox: Gossip, speculation, and scuttlebutt about politics (blog), hosted by Slate September 21, 2001, accessed November 20, 2006. Note the full context of this quotation:
It is, to be sure, a little bit cheap (and slightly at odds with the usual parameters of this feature) to criticize someone for making an erroneous prediction, particularly after a tragedy. Chatterbox is especially reluctant to tag Johnson because Johnson's op-ed was argued forcefully, backed up meticulously with factual data, and bravely at odds with conventional wisdom at the time of its publication. Add in that Johnson now makes his living as a consultant to corporations about terrorism, and therefore had everything to gain by exaggerating the dangers terrorism poses, and the guy practically looks like a hero. Chatterbox, who two decades ago was an editor for the New York Times op-ed page, would have published Johnson's piece had he still been an editor there this past July. In his capacity at Slate, Chatterbox might well have written up Johnson's prediction, and perhaps even endorsed it.
But boy, is he glad he didn't! Johnson's analysis, we now see, was bold, persuasive, and 100 percent wrong. Sadly, a mistake this embarrassing cannot be ignored. As a fellow skeptic, Chatterbox in all sincerity wishes Johnson better luck next time.
^ Larry C. Johnson, "Johnson vs. President Bush," re-posted and updated by SusanHu at DailyKos (blog) July 25, 2005.
^ FOX News Interview with John Garrett (14 November 2001) Transcript #111405cb.260.
^ [3].
^ a b Larry C. Johnson, "Setting the Record Straight on Iraqi Terrorism," posted in Booman Tribune: A Progressive Community (personal blog) 27 January 2003. accessed 19 November 2006.
^ Qtd. in Toby Harnden, "CIA 'pressure' on al-Qa'eda chief," The London Telegraph 5 March 2003: 16.
^ Qtd. in Nicolas D. Kristof, "Save Our Spooks," The New York Times 30 May 2003:A6.
^ Democracy Now (3 October 2003)[4]
^ U.S. Senate, Democratic Policy Committee Meeting on the CIA Operative Leak, (24 October 2003).
^ Letter to the Senate.[Needs full source citation; see "References" section.]
^ Tumulty, Karen (2008-06-12). "Will Obama's Anti-Rumor Plan Work?", Time Magazine. Retrieved on 20 June 2008.:"a story that apparently first made a big splash on the Internet in late May in a post by pro-Hillary Clinton blogger Larry Johnson"
^ Whitey Tape, API, Phil Berg, and Andy MartinSee Authors Posts (1090) on June 21, 2008 at 8:20 PM in Current Affairs
Tim Russert will be deeply missed by family and friends. By all accounts he was a good husband, father, and friend. But as a TV host, he was a cheap shot artist who played a stack deck. This moment from a September 2007 Democratic debate illustrates Russert’s tendency to shill for the Bush Administration and play the role of enabler with respect to Iraq.
Hillary’s response was classy and direct, despite Russert’s lame ambush attempt. She would not back down. She would not pander. And she was absolutely right about a critical issue affecting our nation’s security. And Tim? He played the role of smug prick quite well. Count me in the minority of those who do not believe Tim was a saint or giant of broadcasting. He was a shill and did not give a damn about getting to the truth of the matter. I wish for the sake of his family he was still alive and well, but I am glad he is gone from the tube.
(small, medium and large sizes; for both dogs and cats)
+ 
Harsh but true about him. I wish his family the best.
Amen on all counts. He was a ball buster but may he rest in peace.
He was a pack bully.
Is it just me or is it true that Hillary looks more and more beautiful every day and the more I see her? And I love her sense of humor too.
I don’t get those who criticize her looks. She looks damn fine (for her age) to me!
Sorry nothing to do with Tim Russert, I just can’t help saying.
Hillary was the least attractive in her 30’s, actually.
She’s one of those women who has grown into her beauty.
That is a fun part of nature, in my opinion. Some of us are gorgeous at 20 and it doesn’t hold. Others tend to grow into beauty.
I suppose it’s a special kind of perspective that can see an older woman’s beauty.
But in today’s age of “Cougar” loving, I can tell you……the stereotypes of the past?
Gone. LOL*
Now I’m still a staunch conservative on that personal level.
But I sure could tell a few stories that would turn aside the remarks made by sexists about the attraction of older women.
I’ll refrain.
Yep, she wasn’t a beauty pageant contestant when she was younger. She’s most attractive today. She has a great stylist these day too. Love her hair, love her smiles…love her! She just looks natural and comfortable with herself despite all the crooked things people say about her.
And even Chelsea has grown into a charismatic beautiful young woman too. If I was a man, I would want to date her (not just because she’s a Clinton) but because she has inner bauty -more than her physical beauty- like her mom.
I agree. She just lights me up when I hear her speak and I LOVE it when she ‘takes no shit’!!!
Thanks Larry, for stating the truth.
I miss her, She was really great in debates, She’d make a Great Commander in Chief.
She’d be a nominee we could all be proud of.
Yep. And the most beautiful one we have had too.
Seeing her makes me more determined to have her all over again in 2012 if not this year. That can only happen if Obambi loses. So I guess we have to work toward that end.
I don’t mind a beautiful, smart, funny president in my lifetime at all! Do you?
yeah.
I loved that moment in the debate. She was so classy, and the next line was cute too, “Well, I’ll talk to him later.”
As an aside, she is just beautful there too. I miss her.
These comments are touching and truthful. There must be a way to keep Hillary visible. It won’t come from the Obama forces or the MSM. They both intend to ‘dissapear’
her, quickly or slowly and surely. Add the Democratic Party to that also. Obama may offer her the VP slots so he can ‘keep his enemy close’.
She must consolidate and nurture her
hard won power from the primary so she can speak from her own independent center of power. I am thinking a lot
about where she can best do this and am growing certain
it should be from her Senate seat. What does everyone one else think?
I miss her and will look for a way to keep her visible.
I too, so much, miss hearing and seeing Hillary. She is sooo smart, on point, authentic. She honestly gives me real HOPE we can get this country back on track. We do need to keep her “center stage” as much as possible. We need to organize around her joint appearances with Nobama. Make them PRO-HILLARY events. Put her back in the spotlight where she rightly belongs. That is why his camp is being so secretive about locations. Don’t want to give us time to prepare. Stupid ‘bama! Doesn’t he realize Hillary has supporters everywhere who can come out at a moments notice?? He can’t hide from us.
Agree. As I said, we want Obama lose for this very reason so Hill can reappear. So the only effective way of doing it is voting for McCain, albeit very reluctantly.
The party elite needs to learn a lesson and it can only happen when we don’t support their nominee and work against him.
Russert was doing this 11 years ago. He was outed totally and
completely by one of the Kalb brothers who ( part of the Cronkite generation with a reputation above reproach ) wrote a book about the MSM’s immediate response to President Clinton’s admission to his affair with Monica. Good riddance!
He should have been fired long ago. And thanks to Larry for posting an example of the creep at work. I would like to see many of the others disappear. There is nothing laughable or forgiveable about the destruction they’ve wrought going back, I guess, to around the latter half of the 70’s.
Also, the MSM’s response to his death shows a degree of denial that borders on the psychotic. That is the truth. This is
our MSM- Beware!
I wonder how Dan Rather will be received if he dies or how is it that Cronkite who was the face of the evening news must feel seeing as Tim Russert might as well have been a dead President by the media coverage over his funeral.
Gawd NBC has really taken a nose dive since a certain producer became the CEO.
eloquent AND blunt. thanks. I’m so tired of having to explain my lack of interest in his death to people, except for feeling sorry for his family, as I would for anyone. To me he was no one special, and a lot less than that.
here’s an online post about media access to obama…
http://thevote.abc13.com/2008/06/access-to-oba-1.html
Yes, and here’s the link to a the NY Times article reference in the post above.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/19/america/19campaign.php
I wish the best for his family…I know it is a very hard time….BUT….no person in the press should have the power or the right to say when an election is over as he did the night of the North Carolina vote…I never watched him on anything after that…and I heard many ask on television after he died….”The way he called the election over…Who else can do that?”….the answer was always “no one”….I say thank god for that….the press needs to stay out of the elections and let the people vote…No one and I mean No One has the right to do what that man did…They need to report the news not make it up and that is all NBC/MSNBC seems to be able to do…make it up as we go along….no wonder they are at the bottom in the ratings..
Amen!
I am glad you replied, I worried about being so honest about how I felt after I hit add comment…I see I am not alone here….it was wrong what he did…he helped Obama get where he is…nothing Obama has ever done qualifies him to be president..I don’t know who is/was more deceptive TR or BO.
I saw that show, he had 4 guests all in the tank for Obama and the show opens where each guess says it is over. Nobody was allowed on who did not disagree.
No. We need much tougher questioning of candidates, although it need not be in Russert’s “gotcha” style.
I’d love for one of Russert’s successors to begin a debate like this:
“Senator, you have proposed trillions of dollars in new spending, which according to experts will cost our grandchildren tens of thousands of dollars each.
“Why do you want to stick our grandchildren with a bill like that?“
Any indication of who the network is going to appoint as his replacement?
Tim Russert clone, Brian Williams.
Why aren’t we getting an inexperienced “new kind” of journalist? All talk, no walk!
Thanks, Larry, for your post! I totally agree! He was no better than the rest, imo. I do feel for his family and wish them comfort.
I have watched him in no confrontational settings and some of it has been informative. Sorry for his families loss. I have been disapointed he never came forward promptly when Rove was ear waxing him.
His gotcha meme was very disturbing, and him wagging his finger at Senator Clinton was very low class.
—-
OT; Mr Johnson, I have been looking for
1) Who it was that was involved in putting Obama’s “newly-formed foreign policy panel” together. BO is not qualified to rattle of a list of names as Senator Clinton would be able to, so I have been wondering who was “driving”. Puppet strings…
2) In the articals I have read, the following was stated. Have been unable to see which militay peeps he was “talking too”, do you have any ideas who they might be?
Thanks
Well, then, he should go with Merill McPeak.
Genereal Mcpeak would make a fine, fine, fine, VP, wouldn’t he?
Thought about that but McPeek doesn’t dance with those people.
And I wanted to know who the Marionette players were putting the BO “team” together. BO is incapable of doing it himself. He does not know these folks.
Besides from what I have read Boren said he was contacted in March.
Yes, I do feel very sad for his family, that he is gone at such a relatively young age. My prayers are with his wife and son and extended family.
I will not miss him on MTP.
What struck me as odd was the attention his death got for days. It shows how much the media truly loves themselves. He wasn’t a head of state, he wasn’t a religious leader, he wasn’t a civic leader. He was a reporter.
Yes…it’s the Larry King effect.
Larry–you’re “dead on” with this one.
I thought all the worship was absolutely ridiculous. Quite frankly, the man did nothing to merit days of adulation (he often smirked, pandered, flattered, and attacked instead of doing a proper job)–there are many more far deserving men and women, whose deaths are ignored by the media.
A LOW bar was set for hagiography when The Addled Puppet Reagan went to that big Craft Service Table in the sky.
Let’s hope that Tweety keeps his blood glucose and his dedication to the fruiy of the vine in check.
I don’t think I could stand more than one these post-mortem Love-ins of the sub-mediocre per year.
Best part of all this? Screw network TV.
I have now seem all of the Sopranos, Sports Night, Six Feet Under twice or thrice, Deadwood once, and am awaiting the arrival of the second season of Arrested Development on DVD.
Someone take Andrea Mitchell’s (AND hubby’s) BP.
Loved Deadwood and Arrested Development…they’re all good shows but try to rent the DVD collection for Carnivale and Weeds, too. The great thing, of course, is: we don’t need no stinkin’ cable TV!
Spot on. I’m too young to have watched the original “Meet the Press” but I have seen the reruns, and he absolutely ruined the show.
On a side note, how on earth did we get stuck with a hack instead of this extrodinarily qualified woman?
And Hillary looking so qualified and classy, as always!
Hillary was bang on of course.
Larry, if you died; I am sure no one in the world would be giving a damn.
I would.
Me too.
And me.
and me.
Same here. Please keep working for our future, LJ!!
Me too, but Larry would be standing next to Obi…
There is another.
Funny Sean, nobody would give a damn if you died either.
me too - boy you are a schmuck!
Are you projecting again, Sean? Such an undroll troll you are!
I will miss Tim Russert. Hillary handled herself well in the video.
good bye..good riddance..fat head..his family prolly feels the same. He was a skank. He had a good life and was taking up too much space..so off to hell he goes..
Yeah that’s cruel alright but he was a cruel man who deserves it.
No, absolutely not. Whether the question was tough, and brough in Bill Clinton, at the time the speculation was is this going to be a “co-presidency”, Hillary stopped that dialogue in less than 30 seconds. It was clear she was her own woman and was not beholden to the politics of the 1990s.
Tim Russert was a good man. Hillary and Bill were at the service; and had a long conversation with Luke Russert.
If you believe Hillary is the best candidate, you believe she can handle herself with tough press. Hillary wasn’t robbed by the press; The press formented her.
Hillary was robbed by the DNC and Chicago Machine. Hillary was not robbed by Tim Russert or Chris Matthews.
Olbermann is not a newsman, he’s a sportscaster.
The bigger they are the harder they fall. Obama has a long hard fall ahead of him.
Russert and Matthews are the gatekeepers. You are full of shit. Their hatred towards Bill and Hillary was palpable. No one could call them on it because they are the MSM. The MSM needs to be taken down.
His death is an omen.
Chris MatTinglelegews is a an ass of a political pundit - not a journalist.
There isn’t anyone writing and investigating stories.
Amen, Larry.
I won’t miss Tim “Let’s go Bills!”, “I’m Scooter Libby’s biotch”, “My wife and I hate the Clintons” Russert.
I’m sad he passed away, but will not miss his hackery on MTP.
Couldn’t agree more. He was nothing but a shill. I stopped watching his Sunday show after I heard Mary Matelin and Cheney were connected to him. Absolutely sickening.
During the endless media coverage of his death, they kept showing pictures of him at parties with POLITICIANS. I’m sorry, but News people should not be partying with politicians! Is there any wonder why our MSM is useless now? NO! They are all cut from the same damn cloth and it’s all so unseemly.
Russert sucked. Period.
I feel bad for his wife and son, but that’s as far as my compassion goes.
I never thought Russert was a good host. He reminded me of a frog on the verge of a fart.
Next to his family’s loss, is the horror of the sexist Chris Matthews taking his place.
PUMA
Impeachment talks swirl around Illinois gov:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-illinois-impeach-bd22jun22,0,4000302.story
The President of the IL Senate, Emil Jones , is protecting the Governor. In a past story Jones says since he (Jones) is a Democrat , he has the obligation to protect a fellow Democrat (the Gov).
Emil Jones is the Kingmaker who we can call thank for the installation of Obama as IL Federal Senator.
I once thought Tim Russert was the top of the media pole, but this last year of him drinking the BO kool-aid left me cold. I rarely watched MTP anymore or any show he was a part of, because I knew there would be strong bias for BO and anti HRC. I am sorry for his family that he is gone, but I will not miss him. Actually you would think the pope died the way the media is dealing with Tim’s death.
I did not watch TV for days because I did not want to see the “state funeral” for Tim Russert…..I just left it off until I thought it might be all over with.
I have been annoyed with him since he was everywhere talking about that book he wrote about his father…..what about honoring his mother? That was what I thought at the time. And then the awful way he was so obviously pro-BO and anti-Hillary. Disgusting.
Agree.
And once again, I am so pleased you have had the graciousness and generosity of spirit to share this website with us along with the cost and hard work. And once again, you speak for us. You could not have said it any better. I learned to deeply dislike him over the last few months or so but I know he was better than that and I believe he knew it too. I believe (or like to believe) that his heart would not let him continue to do what his head and his wallet wanted him to do and so his heart attacked him. I have seen it so often before and if you believe in min/body connections, this was it.
Has Obama no shame? His first OFFICIAL ad claims credit for a vets healthcare bill he did NOT vote for.
Oops! Obama Did It Again
So Obama’s new ad, the first of the general election, “cites Public Law 110-181 when he talks about his efforts to extend ‘health care for wounded troops who’d been neglected.’” The problem? Obama never showed up to the vote. He was actually too busy campaigning to make it back to Washington to vote for the bill, but wants the American people to think he deserves the credit. Sounds a lot like the 2005 Energy Bill, which Obama has the gall to attack John McCain on even though the junior senator from Illinois voted for it and McCain voted against it.
http://obamawtf.blogspot.com/2008/06/oops-obama-did-it-again-so-obamas-new.html
He always does that …claims someone else work for his own…smears McCain for things he (obama) voted for and and McCain voted against…he did it to Hillary…and now he is keeping McCain busy defending himself against Obama’s lies….just like he did Hillary….we spent all of our time on line fighting his lies…defending Hillary we had no time to tell people how good she was and what kind of real change she would make…always fighting obama’s lies…I hope America is on to him by now…
Typical mediocre man prancing around taking credit for everybody else’s work.
He’s just begging for the 527’s to get busy. And then it will be racism. He apparently doesn’t think that he should be held responsible for anything?
i just wasn’t a fan of Mr. Russert.His role as debate moderator in particular was distasteful.The Buffalo one with Rick Lasio when Hillary first ran for the senate comes to mind. The october one in Philadelphia was downright outrageous.Then his final shot at her in Cleveland.He set the political tone at msnbc and it was not professional or pretty.
Before anyone takes umbrage I want to say my father was a newspaper reporter in NY in the fifties and sixties. He carried a manual royal typewriter with him everywhere he went. He passed in the early 1970’s(I was younger than Mr. Russert’s son is). While I feel empathy for his son I’m thinking what my dad’s reaction would be to the travesty news reporting has become today. His last writing was on Nixon during the watergate hearings. I feel Mr. Russert did nothing to enlighten us in fact he was quite cozy with the political establishment. Sad though his passing was it does not change the fact that he very much was part of the problem we see in the media today. Notwithstanding the self-congradulatory bloviating of the press 24/7 for days after his sudden death.
I know this is OT…but…this picture makes me mad…
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/nb-staff/2008/06/21/weekend-captionfest-ii
It seems so wrong to take that seal and change it!
PUMA POWER!
Off topic when I went of the http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/frameset_search.asp site Utah’s family seach center (big I went there)
Any his father death shows up in the 1980’s showing Stanley as his wife. (She was already remarried right?)
Also Obama sister said she is 9 years younger than Obama it sounds like to me that when she was born he was shipped back to the States (I wonder what that means you do no want keep your children together?)
What was it Sophies choice?
In an interview Rep. James Clyburn said that ‘because Obama was abandoned by his mother at a young age and shipped off to his grandparents because she could not care for him, AAs can relate to him.’ In several printed interviews it has been stated that (1) Obama’s stepfather was an oil company manager in Indonesia, therefore, Ann Dunham would not have had a problem ‘caring for him’. (2)When he was 10 years old he REQUESTED of his mother that he go to school in HI and stay with his grandparents. (3) At the end of grammar school/jr high he told her that he wanted to stay in HI to attend High School. His ‘abandonment’ is a falacy.
This was in a Time or Newsweek article about Stanley Ann Dunahm a few months ago.
You read a different article than I did then….his mother felt he would get a better education overall in the U.S. than in Indonesia, so he went there to live with his grandparents. Looks like his mother was right, no? What is so wrong with this? in a way his mother did abandon him, but it was for a positive reason and for his benefit -
And oh, I forgot Larry, you have the best site, current updates, & most of your bloggers are top notch!
PUMA
I’m sorry, but I detested that man with every fiber in my being!
Yes, I am sad for his family. Having your husband and father taken like that must have been devastating. My sympathies go out to his family. That being said, Tim Russert was a HACK! He was full of himself and he was arrogant! The man drooled all over Bush and his lap dog Cheney and his Man-Crush on Obama was disgusting! He NEVER had a guest on his show that disagreed with his warped views of the Clinton’s and he relished in his attacks of the same!
I never respected the man, I never agreed with the man and I will never miss the man! I was called a piece of shit on this thread the night he died by some Obama Troll because I spoke my mind about this hack! To bad! This is what I felt about him then and I still feel this way today!
This man helped set the agenda for the Bush agenda’s push to war with Iraq.
Russert did enormous damage to this country with that show of his. He was in a unique position to challenge those in power with the show he moderated but instead he chose to cozy up to them and by doing so was a accessory to the wrongs committed by Bush and his gang!
Russert was not a good man! A good man would have spoken out against the wrongs committed by those in power rather than jumping in bed with them!
No, I will not miss Russert!
He was no friend of mine!
I think a lot of people feel this way…and Larry gave us a place to vent here…I mean no disrespect to his family but the media has let us down and Russert was one of the biggest let downs…I hope no one ever has that kind of power in the media ever again.
I agree. Tim is from a working class background and held a public microphone for 20 years and instead of doing something good with it he selfishly become a multi-millionaire and even more amazingly, he believed his own press.
That makes him a complete and utter ass.
He will probably make sainthood before Mother Theresa.
I always thought he was definitely one of the enablers of the Iraq war too … he and cheney were always just a little too comfortable together for my comfort. I also think we have to respect individual practice of faith, but I think his ubercatholicism also came into play FAR too many times for him to be called an objective ‘journalist’ per se. His patronizing manner towards Hillary betrays a jesuit upbringing with a ‘lordship’ attitude over women. I’m not putting him exactly in the same class as Limbaugh, but I wouldn’t put him in the same class as Ed Murrow, Walter Cronkite or any of the truely great reporters of our time either. I’d take Wolf Blitzer ANY day of this guy. Russert became the story a few too many times to earn my respect and he enjoyed when that happened WAY too much.
But again, this was a tragedy for his family and my heart goes out to them.
I agree with you Larry. I never liked his biased hosting duties on Meet the Press or elsewhere; and he was certainly part of the misogynist boys club on msnbc. I do feel for his family, but they will be well taken care of and TR is being venerated like he was a saint.
Tim Russert is a criminal.
In 2000 he put Florida in Bush’s column (at Jack Welch’s request) thereby helping the election theft.
He then insisted that Gore concede.
After 9.11 he asked Laura Bush and Giuliani if they think God put Bush there to protect us.
He played an active role in Plamegate - and it was obvious that he was always getting his talking points directly from the White House.
That would be BESIDES what he did to Hillary this campaign (or to Bill Clinton for 8 years)
I wonder what his conversation with God was like.
She probably said Out Damn Spot!
I think the quote is “I knew you not”.
God sent him to hell.
I doubt he made it.
And how could I forget - propagated all the lies leading to war - fully knowing the truth.
Larry:
Absolutely correct. TR used his position and authority to promote his own agenda. He was shameless and shameful, definitely not a journalist and unfortunately just another blowhard political hack.
Frankly, he won’t be missed.
Craig Della Penna
“He was a shill and did not give a damn about getting to the truth of the matter.”
9 am, 9 am. Whatever happened to 9 am?
Coronary?
Thank you Larry for this post….you always come through just at the right time…
Did a post go up that I didn’t see on Obama’s new presidential seal for his campaign? I think it will backfire on him…I was reading a piece and read some of the comments and people don’t like it…I guess this is Obama style change..the kind that pisses everyone off….I guess we will “get over it”..the sob..
Watching that clip of Hillary reminded me how much I miss seeing her. She is so smart, intelligent and witty. She has the knowledge to make our country better than ever and I’m still so pissed that she didn’t get the nomination.
Well now……neither has he ….officially.
The family will miss him; the media will show respect and loyalty to him and mourn him publicly. As far as myself, I can only say that Tim Russert did his job well. That means that he saw himself as an attack dog….but he chose whom to attack….and he decided to make Hillary his victim. However, I was always in awe as to how she rose above all the attacks. That is my memory of Tim Russert!
We miss out on prolly the best president ever..Hillary Clinton. It’s been 2 weeks today since she was forced to suspend her campaign. If the elections were fair, she’d be the nominee. How in the world they got away with giving BHO delegates in a state he wasn’t even on the ballot is beyond me. His dead people votes, pet votes, and votes from “would be voters” got him across the delegate line. He is the illegitimate candidate and always will be.
I had not seen that particular video. Kudos for Hillary, shame on Russert. That was low beyond low. I know they didn’t like each other. She was very gracious in her message to the family. I really don’t understand the animosity towards Hillary Clinton. I never will. She is the best of the best. I’ll be an ardent fan of hers forever. And never for Obama.
I agree with you. If Hillary were still in the race, she would have had 2 major policy meetings in the last few weeks. Obama seems pretty boring without Hillary to keep him on his toes. She is the best of the best. She is not a media persona but very much the bet possible president. Too bad that everyone does not agree with us, ehh???
You and I are smart!
WOW - Larry - I wholeheartedly agree, especially when Hillary ran for President - Russert showed his true colors more than ever and look at the “tribute” he received. Deserved?…I think NOT.
Today I read an article in Time on Russet by Joe Klein where he stated, “The only real differences we had in 30 years of friendship were over his treatment of both the Clintons, which I thought was occasionally too sharp–and had its roots, I believed, in the strict lessons about sex and probity he’d learned from the nuns (which he often joked about). So it is nobody’s imagination that Russet was unfair to the Clintons. Personally, I lost respect for him during the primary when he treated Hillary in his sexist manner. I also feel that a true journalist is independent and he was not in this primary.
Another thought for a Saturday night. I have often wondered how college students and poor AA could be giving so much money on the internet to OB’s campaign. I also saw today that he did not raise the big bucks in May. I have to ponder if the credit card crunch is hitting his Kool-Aid crowd. The next thing I will hear is that we have to bail out the card companies because of all the bad debt made by the contributions to his campaign. I guess that insult won’t be any worse than the way we have already been treated by the Democratic Party.
His big money backers are getting cold feet? Buyers remorse? Prolly.
Republicans? Now that they have the weakest link, they are giving their real money to McCain? Just a thought.
Agree with you about Russert fully. I posted a link for an obamadroid last week that proved he was a Bushie pocket man. So-called “progressives” seem to have forgotten all about media manipulation and things like that.
Love Hillary’s wit. Damn, I miss her so much. Rocky.
Tim Russert’s sudden death is an omen to the MSM who don’t play fair. How he loved dissing Hillary.
And that fake boyish glee. The Minister of DisInformation. Stacking the deck for Bushm and Obama-Manchurian. He had something against women too.
That whole over the top memorial: “Chuck (Todd), what is it that you will remember most about Tim?” ’sigh’ “Well for thing he was FAIR.”
Puh-lease!
That should be “well for one thing he was FAIR.”
What is it about devout Catholic guys like Russert and Matthews and women. Is it anti-Mary thing going on.
Rocky had it going on. What a fantastic fighter she is. She didn’t lose. America lost.
BINGO!
My sympathies to his family and friends, but, ultimately, good riddance!
Russert was a corporate blowhole. Plain and simple he did the dirty work for the man. RIP timeh.
I saw the “interview” with Scott McClellan (sp?). I thought that Russert sounded like he got all of his lines from the bush regime. Although I get no pleasure in how it happened, I am glad that TR is off the air.
My friend’s little 8 year old daughter has a saying for why people like Tim Russert die young…she says “God don’t like ugly.”
AMEN.
And My Goodness…Hillary is so wonderful. WTF is wrong with this country?????? This is a brief glimpse of what we could have. It’s just wrong on so many levels that Idiot Boy is parading around pontificating and patting himself on the back for being president…OOOOPSS… he’s not yet! Someone better tell him before he embarasses himself.
Too Late.
Yeah, ya really gotta admire Hillary. You know, the way she voted for the Iraq War in 2002 but then turned around and wanted to cut & run when things got tough, just like the rest of the chickenshit Democrats in Congress. She’s no different than her husband. Her position on an issue depends on which way the political winds are blowing at the moment.
Her calling Gen. David Patraeus a liar in public simply because he didn’t tell her what she was hoping to hear was a really nice touch too. Remember “What you’re telling us requires a willing suspension of disbelief.”? Well, it looks now like Gen. Patraeus was right, doesn’t it?.
John McCain was one of only a handful of leaders who had the guts to stand up and call for more troops in late 2006 when it was considered political suicide to be doing so. Moreover, McCain had been calling for more troops from the start. Had Bush and that idiot Donald Rumsfeld listened to him, we’d be out of Iraq by now.
Hillary’s behavior with regard to Iraq has been no less craven than Obama’s. Not a whit. I don’t trust her to protect the country any more than I’d trust Obama.
Gawd, another she voted for the war idiot. You’re not even worth a the effort. Get your facts straight before you come here. Jesus. You make me so tired. Oh nevermind.
yeah get your facts straight. same old noise.
Obama then must be a “vote to sustain the war finances” shill.
Any cogent thoughts? Like the new FISA stance? Wide enough for you?
It was the last debate. His eyes were literally bulging out of his sockets as he questioned Hillary. If you can, watch it.
After he sold the Iraq War, was called to testify at the Scooter Libby trial ( interestingly enough he had to hobble on cructches), and finally his treatment of Hillary during this Primary.
Yes, it is an Omen.
Obama is TOXIC!
Kennedy, Russert, the floods in Iowa, and theres’ more to come. I wouldn’t be caught dead standing next to this guy in a thunderstorm.
I had stopped watching MTP long ago. I’m sure GE is using our tax dollars to right off all of the lossess for nbc/msnbc.
And yes, my condolences to his family. Personal loss is devastating.
RIP Russert
http://www.obama-wire.com
That moment is actually one of my favorites out of all the debates!
thanks larry for your post.
my condolences to the russert family.
but i must say, that hillary, she’s one smart lady.
I MISS HILLLARY.
PUMA
I am a This Week with George Stephanopoulis fan myself. They overlap each other on Sunday so MTP
dropped off my radar along time ago.
Tim was a bit smug for my taste. The coverage of his death and funeral were a BIT OVER THE TOP!
Regrets to his family for their very sad personal loss.
Thank you.
I disliked his gotcha style tactics. He was very biased as well. When Hillary was on MTP for an hour, she was grilled endlessly for the whole hour. No softball questions, no humor, nothing. Months later, he did Obama for an hour and it was very different. Friendly, softball questions, laughs. Whatever.
I hated him in the debates. He was, I thought, unprofessional. And totally biased. Thank you for your comments. I totally agree.
My biggest memory of Russert from this year was him playing the truncated clip to Hillary, during her aqppearance on MTP, of Pres. Clinton saying, “Give me a break. This whole thing is the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen,” and not the context where the president was talking about Obama’a evolving stances on the Iraq war.
Russert along with the Obama campaign and most of the media deliberately pushed the smear that the Clinton’s were playing the race card. He was not the great, fair journalist that he’s eulogized as being.
Nevertheless, my condolences to his family especially Luke, he’s a very impressive young man.
Wow, I miss Hillary. Everything is so boring since she left.
She is truly a great debater!
I have empathy for his family but the six days of Russert eulogies were too much. He wasn’t a head of state.
Russert had been blatantly anti-Clinton for YEARS! And it was reflected in any reporting he did related to the Clintons.
When he became a star he was no longer a reporter with any objectivity.
His agenda was clear in the questions he asked at the debates.
Remember when he posed the question:
“What’s the new Russian president’s name.” Obama’s face dropped so Russert turns and poses it to Hillary. Then Obama says.”Senator Clinton is correct.”
What a freaking JOKE!
The Russert-types, those who have been living in their insular worlds way too long, they’ll never understand why we connect with the Clintons.
We see their flaws. We see their weaknesses. We see their strengths. We see their talents.
And because they are such publically complex human beings, we can all see something about ourselves in them.
This is rare in a politician. Even rare to find two such politicians married to each other.
Bunch of fucking idiots, beat up on the dead guy because it makes your loser girl look better. She would never be able to hold a candle to that man. Damn I miss him, rest in peace Timmy.
Russert oversaw the direction where NBC News headed and he played the visible maestro. He treated his personal favs like gold and crapped all over anyone who didn’t fit into his Opus Dei, Catholic choir boy view of the world.
I won’t miss him. He knew his health wasn’t favorable and the network didn’t make a big deal out of it, until it came crashing down on them.
I wish his family well; and I see his son will work hard because no one can deny that Tim worked his ass off and outside of his religion and politics most certainly was a candid, warm person.
The problem was that his job was politics and he sure didn’t know the meaning of Objective when it came to Senator Clinton or anyone who made MSNBC look like a bunch of extreme left ass kissers.
Just want to say I miss Hillary, too. I just don’t know how I’m going to react seeing her on the same stage as Obama, supporting him. I think I’ll go shopping that night, too painful to watch. I respect and heart her like no other, but just can’t vote for him ever, no, no, not ever.
Russert was indeed smug when he asked Hillary that question, but she gave it right back to him.
On par, Russert was an equal-opportunity player with the gotcha questions. I don’t see how he is a shill for the Bush Administration - Russert worked Dick Cheney over after the invasion of Iraq and no WMD was found.
Rest in peace, Tim.
Here is a clue when you know the News is being Truthful and focused on as close to the notion of pure Objectivity: the news is BORING AND HONEST, MATTER-OF-FACT AND GIVES YOU THE FACTS.
When it’s entertainment and hype it’s ON 24/7.
Raise your hand if you recall when Cronkite was doing the news and the only ones watching it were retired individuals or middle-aged men.
Now it’s Gossip 101.
The tradtional news of journalism and broadcasting mocked the Tabloid Rags for being crap, yet now they are about 90% tabloid and 10% objective journalism.
It must have been truly painful for them to realize that the Inquirer or The Star, Sun and the tabloids the world over were making a killing talking about aliens, stars sleeping around, to Jesus coming every other week while stores couldn’t keep this crap on the shelves.
Meanwhile, the traditional professional publications were slowly dying.
Call me nostalgic but I wager we’ll see an upstart News Network that comes along and promises real journalism again and you’ll see its rating skyrocket.
Hi Larry,
Thank you for what you wrote about Hillary here (and elswhere too), for standing up for her.
I am a fan of Hillary too, because of who she is and what she stands for. Her principles are what makes America respected still around the world.
Even as you are making a stand for America and Hillary, you are also making a stand for democracy and freedom all over the world because these principles are universal.
Please take heart that many like myself are cheering you and your fellow Clinton supporters on and praying for your success!
Your Aussie friend
Yay!
While I am sad for his family and his friends, learning of his death gave me an odd sense of relief that he would be off the air.
Like someone said upthread, he would not have anybody on his show who disagreed that Obama was the nominee following the Indiana and North Carolina primaries. He ran the NBC Washington Bureau and anybody who favored Hillary too much was probably frowned upon. I’ve been a reporter and when an editor or higher-up does not like your work, you get fewer assignmetns. Nobody is 100% objective and that was so very true of Russert.
I think Russert should have been fired after he called the election “over” in North Carolina. That was one of the most irresponsible actions in reporting I’ve ever seen, yet he gets pats on the back for it. As we all know, super delegates could have been/and still can be swayed to go in another direction. His arrogance (or stupidity) was simply mind boggling and his statement should be printed as the first sentence in the first chapter of every text book entitled “Journalistic Ethics 101: What Not To Do”
Due to the continual biased reporting conducted by both him and his colleagues, Hillary lost an enormous amount of momentum, support, and votes she otherwise might have picked up—starting in New Hampshire. Guess they all didn’t learn their lesson in 2000 on what can happen when news channels try to call elections before they’re over.
I know that many famous people, like reporters and politicians, like to write books and talk about their religion. Then they go on the talk show circuit and spout off the morality lessons from their childhood and faith—it comes in one blow hole and goes out the other. I’m thinking the majority of these people do it for PR purposes more than anything else—because words don’t mean anything unless you actually apply the principles in other settings besides a church pew. I quit watching Russert a LONG time ago when he led the charge on the MSNBC playground to beat up Hillary with his school yard bullies. I’m sure that’s something all his nuns, priests, and spiritual advisors would have been so proud of .
As far as his family goes, I know this is a difficult time for them. I have no doubt he was a wonderful father, husband, and son. I may have wanted him to quit the business, but I’m sorry about his early passing for their sake.
I simply don’t like the political shows today. Too much pretense at objectivity. Not enough objectivity.
Actually, the two guys I pay attention to (maybe not now, since we’re in the GE) were Buchanan and Rove.
I suppose that’s because they are Republicans, so they could actually comment objectively on the primary rather than just speak off of the talking points bulletins.
McLaughlin is the best right now since the show has bouts of objectivity and honesty. Nothing like that comes out of any of the other shows. Russert was simply Punkinhead, nothing more.
Fairness is a good indicator of character. For all the accolades that Tim received for being a good person, his record of fairness in reporting is less pronounced. The reason? Because he was a shill when required to be so. Sorry Tim, but truly decent people don’t TRY to destroy other people who don’t jive with your own belief system. Evidently, your job was to put your particular slant on the news without regard to fair and honest reporting.