June 13, 2008

Tim Russert, the best political interviewer of all time, has died. HP salutes him, and he will be missed something terrible.


37 comments:

Anonymous said...

The Greatest of our Generation, maybe Ever. A True Pro in every sense of the definition.

No One out prepared Tim Russert. The Charlie Hustle of Political Reporting.

It was pure joy watching his laser-like intellect destroy at-will some of the dumbest, most corrupt poltical clowns and their protectors each and every week.

Frankly, Tim Russert was the reason for me getting out of bed on Sunday Mornings...

Tim Russert, I salute YOU!

Carpe Diem, HPers.


And Now down to the Worst Ever:
IMPEACH BUSHCO & CHENEYBURTON

blogger said...

It seriously feels like having your starting pitcher pulled during a perfect game

Nobody can come in in relief. The crowd might as well go home, the game called off

He was just that good

Anonymous said...

Cheney must be relieved

Anonymous said...

RIP Tim--

The political landscape will never be the same without you buddy.

Deepest condolences to his friends, family and colleagues...

Anonymous said...

Tim Russert was somebody you could believe in to tell the real truth and at the same time he carried a warm & calm demeanor no matter the subject matter. He seemed to have a great appreciation for America's past times and boy will he be missed in today's chaotic world. I cried when I heard today.

Anonymous said...

Wasn't this guy a kind of a jerk to Ron Paul during one of the debates?

Anonymous said...

Friday the 13th

blogger said...

Russert was a jerk (in questions only) to every public official including Ron Paul.

Tough. Fair. And relentless.

Compare Russert's debate performances to the shallow and waste-of-time questions from Stephanopoulos and Gibson.

Damn, this just sucks. I really don't know who can fill his shoes.

Anonymous said...

Here's an article I read a while back dissecting his interview style and how to get around it.



Interesting take.

Anonymous said...

It's a shame, but also a wake up call to fast food junkies sitting read this blog.

If it's a heart blockage, you all be aware.

He was the perfect storm age.

I had what they call a widow maker blockage on the LAD at 59 and am alive by the grace of god.

That poor soul had no luck,just fame and glory. Was it worth it?

Anonymous said...

I'll echo Keith's thinking here. Russert was extremely tough, fair minded, and knew his stuff. It would have been fair to have him grill both Obama and McCain on their clearly flawed beliefs come election day. Now, its up to the American people to ask them those clowns the questions that Tim would ask.

Anonymous said...

Tim Russert's son was a Ron Paul supporter.

Very sad, although you could look at him and see that he just worked too damn hard.

He was a pro. Rest in peace.

consultant said...

Russert dissected our politicians and business leaders like no other journalist on television. He will be sorely missed because no one else is doing what he did so well-hold the people in power accountable.

The HP blog and all the others have taken off because our mainstream press is not doing its job.

In this coming historical election, his presence will be missed.

Condolences to the Russert family.

Chris said...

I called my wife while I was on the commuter bus coming home, and she told me what happened to Russert. You couldn't find anyone better to dig up things about people that you never heard about before, or find contradictions about politicians' positions that you never realized. Sounds like he was a damn nice person too, treating everyone about the same, no matter who they were. Intelligent, truth-seeking journalism just lost its finest.

Meanwhile, the majority of people in this country, who are too busy keeping track of Britney Spears and Angelina Jolie, are asking themselves, "Who is Tim Russert?"

Anonymous said...

He has a soul, he new right from wrong, good or bad he exposed the truth, he didn't attempt to create it.

Be with God.

Anonymous said...

loved his question to Clinton about the national archives. he didn't let her sweep it under the carpet gracefully.

Anonymous said...

Blogger keith said...

Russert was a jerk (in questions only) to every public official including Ron Paul.

Tough. Fair. And relentless.

Compare Russert's debate performances to the shallow and waste-of-time questions from Stephanopoulos and Gibson.

Damn, this just sucks. I really don't know who can fill his shoes.

June 13, 2008 11:09 PM<<<<


well i suppose all of this is true, more or less. but the question has to be asked? who did he work for and what was their agenda? you see, if you or any of you think we have freedom of the press in this country, then perhaps you should examine closely the ownership of the vast media complex that is in this country. tim was a nice guy, i guess. but was he fair? who knows? and under the circumstances, who cares. you see, it is all a game and a facade. we have no free press and all discussion on the boob toob is controlled and manipulated for a reason and a purpose and freedom of the press is not one of the reasons. after all of that, i can that he seemed to be a nice man, but for all intents and purposes as far as the state of this nation goes, i am somewhat ambivalent about his passing. may God have mercy on his soul. Jesus said "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die...."
John 11:25-26

Anonymous said...

jesus, why couldn't one of those dumb blonde bimbos fox have died from a flawed botox injection or something instead of russert?

Anonymous said...

Is it just me or was he assassinated ?

the powerful always make a murder look like an accident or a death by natural causes.

edd browne said...

Russert was a national asset.
Olbermann is a national disgrace.

Anonymous said...

For those who don't understand how anyone could dislike Tim Russert - I think he was a typical media pundit, pretending to be impartial but all the while pushing the neocon's talking points.

For example, when he was supposed to be an impartial moderator of the debates: Tim Russert asked 26 questions; 14 were to Clinton, with 5 directly targeting her personally....In contrast, Barack Obama got asked what he would do about air travel; whether there was life beyond earth; and the question on which all Americans' safety depends, What are you going to dress as on Halloween?

But Russert's softballs to Obama when compared to Clinton were nakedly obvious to anyone paying attention.....Tim Russert who had no business taking sides. But he did anyway. ....Russert played a card [on the archives question] that was not only disingenuous and meant to bring in Bill Clinton into a debate where Hillary Clinton is running for president, but did so using innuendos and outright falsehoods, according to any objective player.

And Olbermann is a total douche

Anonymous said...

"But Russert's softballs to Obama when compared to Clinton were nakedly obvious to anyone paying attention"

I was wondering if there was Clinton conspiracy! Didn't Russert declare Obama the winner early on? hmmmm, maybe Hillary got even.

Anonymous said...

Matt Lauer said it best. Right now he is heaven with a much broader range of political minds. He is doing is homework, and will got on tommorrow when the red light goes on for "Meet the Press", but he will have a larger panel of guests. All of the former presidents...hearts and minds of all of the best.
Tim, with a spirit as strong as yours, maybe you will shine thru, bighter then ever. God Bless your great, passionate, Irish heart. May you live in love forever.

Anonymous said...

He was one of the few that I actually trusted. When conducting an interview you could rely on him not to be chummy with the guest. If there was a question on everyone's mind, he would ask it and expect a reply and not let any politician dance their way around an issue.

Anonymous said...

good riddance to a shill of a person who under the cover of journalism sold propaganda, half truths and flat out lies to the public who trusted him for the information they needed to base decisions and judgment... as one has to in a democracy.

Anonymous said...

Sorry he is dead, and sorry for his family, but if Russert really was as great a journalist as you believe, then god help us! How can you get past the fact that he totally failed in his journalistic calling by being a willing mouthpiece for the Bush administration in selling the war? To my mind, his complicity mars whatever else he may have done in his career. All this "dissection" of leaders and tough questioning- where was it when we needed it most?

Russert, like Ronald Reagan, can ascend to sainthood now that he has passed away even though the bad that he did lives on.

Anonymous said...

Who in the world would cry or feel sad for mainstream media people? Only HP idiots.

Anonymous said...

Oh, and Tim Russert's son supports Ron Paul.

The apple never falls far from the tree.

Chris said...

Doesn't surprise that there are people on the board who aren't sorry that Tim Russert is gone. "Good riddance" as one loser said?

Just ask yourself...if you didn't like Russert, who in the world do you like? You must be some of the most cynical lowlifes that ever walked the earth to hate him.

Anonymous said...

Watch the Tim Russert/Ron Paul interview from earlier this year and you'll see it's completely dishonest and just another of Russert's lame attempts to play 'gotcha.'

He certainly doesn't deserve to die but he was no better than the others in the mass media. He wanted ratings and he didn't care what he had to do to get them.

To call him a journalist is to completely misunderstand the ideal of journalism and, once again, confuse entertainment with journalism a la Limbaugh, O'Reilly, etc.

I'm not aware of anyone in the mainstream media who adheres to the tenets of professional journalism.

In other words, can you think of anyone in journalism who is the equivalent of Ron Paul in politics? Certainly, Tim Russert was no Ron Paul.

Anonymous said...

The man was talented. He had class. He had integrity. Rare today, in any profession.

Anonymous said...

Condolences to the Russert family. Tim Russert left us far too soon. During one the most historic of election years, his absence will be felt deeply. This is what the man lived for. His infectious enthusiasm for politics will be missed. RIP

Lost Cause said...

Too bad he will be remembered for the ridiculous questions that he asked Obama and Hillary in their last debate.

Anonymous said...

Damn. With Russert's death, the image of American around the world has tanked overnight. I hope someone steps up to fill his shoes so the image of America around the world can soar overnight.

Anonymous said...

Wasn't this guy a kind of a jerk to Ron Paul during one of the debates?


------------------------

That's what made him great he never took sides. He was tough on everyone and anyone.

Anonymous said...

He was a jerk to Ron Paul during a debate and also when he interviewed Paul on Meet the Press. Hardly let him get in one 3-second answer before he fired off another 4 questions in a row. None of these idiots who are only fair to those they agree with will be missed.

Anonymous said...

Barbara Olson wrote the book on Hillary Clinton, HELL TO PAY. She was hot on the trail of California Congressman Gary Condit, who was under suspicion in the disappearance of his love interest & intern, Chandra Levy. Two months after Chandra vanished, Condit had been interdicted while secreting a zippered Tag Heuer wristwatch container in an Old Town, Alexandria, VA, Safeway store dumpster. A fifteen-foot brick wall surrounds that trash receptacle. The Safeway at 500 S. Royal St. is also located about six miles one-way from Condit’s then Washington, DC, address; but only three blocks from James Carville’s residence. Barbara Olson was Los Angeles bound, aboard American Airlines Flight 77, as a guest on Bill Maher’s popular TV show, Politically Incorrect. Flight 77 was hijacked and flown into the Pentagon. Date: September 11, 2001. Chandra Levy's remains were found May 22, 2002 in Rock Creek Park. Gary Condit kept his seat on the Intelligence Committee, but lost his later bid for re-election.

The Huffington Post / 09-01-07: “Since the Dem debate a few days ago a lot of people have understandably been taking shots at Tim Russert for his often small-minded ‘gotcha’ questions and his constant references to Bill Clinton. Some Hillary backers are seething about Russert; indeed, in a conference call with big donors, Hillary pollster Mark Penn and other supporters repeatedly griped about Russert's approach, with one supporter saying that he ‘should be shot.’ It's worth noting, however, that there's a long history here. Russert has been trying to catch out Hillary with ‘gotcha’ questions about Bill and other things for years now – in fact, his efforts to do this date all the way back to Hillary's first Senate campaign in 2000. And then, as now, the Hillary folks were mighty pissed off with him. The bad blood goes way back:” http://theseedsof9-11.com

Dead Drop: Prearranged hidden location for depositing and picking up messages and money in a clandestine manner, without the parties involved being present at the same time. According to Gary Condit a female admirer gave him the timepiece. Gary crossed the Potomac River from DC to Virginia to dispose of the container, yet kept the watch. In 2006, Carville began hosting a weekly radio program 60/20 Sports, with Luke Russert, son of the late Tim Russert. Too much cross-pollination? Russert is survived by his wife Maureen Orth, a writer for Vanity Fair magazine (recent Clinton article), and by their son. In 2008, Carville and wife Mary Matalin moved to New Orleans. “Who would have thought I'd have the opportunity to be in my home state in my favorite city with exciting things happening," says James.