I miss Tim Russert

[ericgtr]

Now that they have Brokaw at the helm over at MSNBC it just isn't the same. Russert did a great job of objective reporting and was usually very accurate, we all remember when he first said Obama won the primaries, he was right on the money with that. It's sad that he can't be a part of this exiting election and I know I miss his sound reasoning at a time when the MSM is all up in arms about everything. :(

[Haole Girl]

1. Yeah, me too

He seemed like a really nice guy. Maybe he was too good for this earth. Who knows?

[Lilyeye]

15. Why the Russert Hate?

I'm just curious as to why some people hated him here? I remember that when he died some right wingers were basically saying "good for that liberal." I didn't know his political standings well and assumed that maybe he was a dem or something because of what they were saying.

[Haole Girl]

19. I don't know. I don't hate him.

Did you think my post was sarcastic, or something.

I was genuinely missing him... really.

:crazy:

[Lilyeye]

56. I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to reply to you. I must have hit reply for your post by mistake. I was talking to the other posters that said they didn't like him.

[Haole Girl]

57. Thanks

To answer your question... it's always easier to hate than love or admire. :hug:

[Honeycombe8]

32. I've never understood it, either. But I miss Russert, too. Well, I know a few things...

it came out I think that Russert had had lunch with Cheney once. Then, when Russert wasn't partisan to the left, he was stated to be on the right, esp. since he'd had lunch with Cheney.

But I'll tell you that he was equally hated on the right. Why? Because he wasn't partisan to the right, so they viewed him as being on the left, even though he'd had lunch with Cheney once, which they viewed as trying to trick Cheney into saying something.

So I figure that Russert must've been doing his job, when the far right AND the far left BOTH hate you. He was an excellent journalist who did his research and was always well prepared. (Yes, there are those who hate him who will argue he wasn't a journalist. But of course he was. He was head of the journalists at NBC or something like that. And he did research into stories, fact checking, writing, and interviewing. Which is what a journalist is.)

[kath]

33. This logical fallacy is trotted out over and over and over and over again.

We're *really* sick of it.

See NJCher's post below.

[Honeycombe8]

43. No, he wasn't a shill for the left. Neither is Brokaw. They are called journalists.

Olberman, much as I like him, is not one (a journalist). Keither was most recently the broadcaster of a sports program, and now he hosts a decidedly pro-left show. Which is fine. It's great, in fact. But it's not a news program. It's an opinion, pro-left program, and doesn't pretend to be a news program.

Those in the know, know what Russert was: a journalist. Just as Brokaw is.

When your opinion differs from almost every single respected major journalist in the country, and your opinion is in agreement with hard core far right wackos...er....you MIGHT want to re-think that opinion as NOT being based on fact, logically.

[ericgtr]

59. Exactly, a good journalist doesn't play sides and Russert was only after the truth

At least in his eyes. I liked him because he seemed truly fair. We as democrats don't like it when our candidates are criticized but that was his job and he was damned good at it.

[Forkboy]

61. Yes, he was after the truth about which way Clinton's cock leaned.

Do you remember the impeachment at all? :shrug:

[The Backlash Cometh]

108. "Integrity is for paupers" and then he went about using his boy scout face

as a front.

I miss the boy scout he could have been. I would have liked to have seen him go into repentance once he understood the role he played in history. He never got that chance. I hope other pundits learn from his mistake.

[snake in the grass]

113. Russert was a fascist mouthpiece...

...who was a leading media figure in the Great Clinton Cockhunt of the 90s. While the FBI was searching the trailer parks in search of a baby sired by WJC, Russert was frothing at the mouth and making millions. He was so fascinated with Clinton's cock he just couldn't get enough. And let us not forget that Cheney preferred going on Meet the Press because of the favorable treatment. Perhaps if Russert had put half the effort into investigating the current administration as he did salivating over Clinton's organs of procreation, maybe we wouldn't be where we are. He failed us in the worst way and I don't miss him at all. I think it is just a shame that he was replaced by another bottom feeder.

[AlCzervik]

2. I miss the league of women's voters sponsoring the debates.

[Kajsa]

111. So do I, Chimpsrsmarter.

They sponsored very good debates.

:(

[Eurobabe]

114. Ditto that.

[kath]

119. When and why did the LoWV stop sponsoring presidential "debates"?

[eleny]

3. I wasn't a fan of Russert's. But Brokaw seems to be adding a sleaze factor.

He's adding a certain ickyness.

[Eurobabe]

115. Brokejaw is a scumbag

What the fuck happened to him? It's like they put a Borg implant in his brain. :shrug:

Welcome to the collective.

[eleny]

117. I even bought his "Greatest Generation" book for hubby when it came out

Well, true colors and all that.

[DainBramaged]

4. I miss my dogs

[anonymous171]

5. Russert was a RW tool, but he liked making politicans of all flavors squirm.

He would destroy Palin if she came on his show.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

80. Dude, he was a Democrat. (nt)

[No Elephants]

88. Wrong. He worked for Moynihan, but that does not mean that he was a Democrat for the rest of his

life. Or even that he was a Democrat when he worked for Moynihan. Matthews worked for Tip O Neill, but proudly said on TV that he had voted for Bush twice. Only after Bush's poll ratings hit the skid did Matthews start criticizing Dummya instead of salivating (literally) over him.

[Gold Metal Flake]

104. "At one point in the evening, Gore explains, Russert approached the candidates."

As Gore was closest to him, Russert respectfully shook his hand and then moved on to Bush. Thinking that Gore had turned away, Russert shook Bush’s hand and, mischievously, turned over his jacket lapel to reveal a Bush campaign pin hidden under the fold.

[stray cat]

6. Tim Russert was pretty fair and offended right and left - I miss him too

[mscuedawg]

7. Thank you for saying that...

Being a newbie, I wasn't sure how he was received and I have hinted in other threads that its strange not to see him involved. This of all elections, not to have him is just ... strange...

[trumad]

9. Russert is despised on this forum and rightfully so....

he was the biggest Rove tool in the bag.

fuck Russert and I hope he burns in hell.

[JimGinPA]

10. Seconded

[palindrome]

36. noone seemed to mind that his Bill Clinton hate extended to Hillary...nt

[Jim Sagle]

51. Thirded.

[Carolina]

73. thirded

nobody seems to remember how 'Chucky' NEVER challenged Cheney's lies leading up to the Iraq Invasion. Cheney was allowed to use Russert's MTP repeatedly for the full hour as a propaganda wing of the White House... no questions (other than softballs), no challenge and later no recriminations.

Russert was a tool who supported Bush. PERIOD!

[mscuedawg]

44. Opinions are like assholes...

...glad you live in a country that enables you to use yours...opinion that is.

[Jim Sagle]

52. Everybody's free to buy a clue as well.

[FarLeftRage]

8. I miss my Grandma

She just loved Eugene V. Debs...

[TeamJordan23]

11. Miss him also. No way Palin would survive a MTP with him. nm

[PeaceNikki]

12. He was a great analyst and I'd love to hear his thoughts on the polls

He called OH and FL as key states very early in 2004 and 2000.

[Gold Metal Flake]

13. Russert was a consumate professional.

He would catapult the Ayers smears with the power and control of Nolan Ryan. Again and again and again.

[trumad]

16. Are you fucking Russert lovers out of your mind or just plain stupid

Jesus Christ you'd think the people that frequent this board were smarter and knew the good and the bad. Russert was an enemy of Democracy. He was the White House butt boy for the last several years and most certainly had a hand in the death of innocent Iraqis American Soldiers.

When Cheney wanted to put his talking points out there, Russert was his go to guy.

Fuck Russert.

[Gold Metal Flake]

21. Why did you post that as a reply to my post?

Are you fucking blind or just drunk this evening?

[trumad]

23. My apologies....

I get pretty angry at ignorant morans who simply don't know what they are talking about.

I didn't mean to reply to your post which is most excellent I might add.

[Gold Metal Flake]

25. Hee hee! I know. You're burning up the GD/P tonight and I love it.

BTW, I left a little nugget in post reply 22 for you. A little blast from the past.

[mscuedawg]

46. Ignorant morans?

Buy a dictionary Einstein...

[Forkboy]

47. Morans is a long standing DU in joke.

[mscuedawg]

50. I guess I missed the...

:sarcasm: tag...I guess I dont get the joke of wanting to look as stupid as someone who can't spell moron....

[Forkboy]

55. I suspect even with the tag then that you wouldn't have liked it.

[asdjrocky]

60. It's truely a time honored tradition.

And people always get caught on it. I remember getting caught on it like it was only yesterday...

[trumad]

62. I have a DU dictionary and that's all I need.

Moran

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

81. No, I'm pretty sure you're out of YOUR mind. (nt)

[Gold Metal Flake]

103. Oh, you are a Timmy supporter.

Another GE zombie.

[Indenturedebtor]

66. I also admired how shiney he was able to polish Bush and Cheney's ****'s

Truly impressive :eyes:

[Booster]

14. I miss his excitement; he would have a ball with this election.

No matter if you agreed with him or not, he did make things interesting.

[barack the house]

17. The guy did have a certain character about him. Clearly wasn't as partisan as we've seen since.>

Only to be fair and balanced here, as we've seen with Katie lately even she has shown some fair journalism and that's the least we can ask for. On any channel in the world we'll never get things completely to our tastes.

[trumad]

18. Make it stop!!!!

It burns.

[scarletwoman]

24. Really! Who the fuck ARE these people?

My gawd! That I should live to see this kind of delusional crap on DU! What the hell?

sw

[October]

39. I know. Are they dropping acid, or what?

Kidding....

but seriously, wtf?

[Jim Sagle]

53. I could tell you who they are, but then DU would have to tombstone me.

;)

[Gold Metal Flake]

22. "At one point in the evening, Gore explains, Russert approached the candidates."

As Gore was closest to him, Russert respectfully shook his hand and then moved on to Bush. Thinking that Gore had turned away, Russert shook Bush’s hand and, mischievously, turned over his jacket lapel to reveal a Bush campaign pin hidden under the fold.

[Grateful for Hope]

95. This post says it all

He was a Bush supporter, and, his "journalism" reflected this.

[scarletwoman]

20. WTF? Russert, the corporate whore? GE's faithful courtier? Are you effing kidding?

Wow. Lincoln was right -- you CAN fool some of the people all of the time.

Apparently you have no memory of all of Russert's failures in challenging all the WMD bullshit in the lead up to the Iraq invasion.

And no memory of the fact that Cheney himself was quoted as saying that running their bullshit through Russert was the best way of getting the American people to buy it.

Russert did his duty for the Ruling Class, nothing more, nothing less.

sw

[dflprincess]

38. Thank you

I was just about to start searching for the Cheney quote about running their BS through Russert so I could post it here. You saved me the trouble.

[Cosmocat]

98. I WISH TO GOD, people would STOP starting these strings ...

Democrat, Republican or a communist, whatever the F he was registered as, he was the linchpin of corporate whoredom - and as such, an enabler of the never ending advancement of safeguarding republican rule through the MSM.

JUST LIKE JOHN MCCAIN has crafted his BULLSPIT "Maverick" image despite being one of the most wired in Washington Insiders, Russert crafted this "ordinary guy" image while being the CONSUMATE DC insider. He had the media lathering on about how he was gobbling up wings at Buffalo Bills games like THAT was who he was, ignoring the fact that he was at the head of the list for any of them there DC cocktail parties.

He put on a good ACT, obviously, but all he did, outside of slamming Ds ALL THE TIME, making his chops by knocking an R occassionally, while completely ducking the REAL issues, was provide cover for the rest of the MSM to whore out.

My problem with these strings is this, people WANT to believe in the IMAGE of the pukebag, start a string, then people who saw him as the linchpin of corporate whoredom call him out for it, then people want to get into a lather about spitting on this grave.

I will make a deal - if people don't START strings advancing the nonsense about him being some paragon of journalism, I won't REPLY that he was IN FACT the consumate WHORE.

[hisownpetard]

109. Right on, sw! And Brokaw is so much worse.

[ShortnFiery]

26. I miss the late George Carlin much more.

The truth shall set you free ... even through Satire.

I would like to believe if Carlin were still alive today, he'd CHANGE just a little and vote for Obama.

AMERICA IS TYRANNY Words of wisdom.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0u6lCBnRoHQ


RIP dear George Carlin. :loveya:

[Arugula Latte]

40. "Amen," said the atheist. :-)

[NJCher]

27. what I missed about Russert

I miss having a journalist with an hour-long show that pimps for the right, too. They're so few and far between. We'll never find another one!

I also miss Russert as an entertainer who masqueraded as a journalist. As an actor portraying a journalist, he was unparalleled. Some days I'd really think he was a "journalist" but then he would say things like "journalistic integrity is for losers." Sure did ruin my fantasy!



Cher

[kath]

31. Great post!

Touche! (can't figure out how to get the accent over the "e")

[Raster]

68. "integrity is for paupers"

[No Elephants]

89. Bingo! We have a winnah!

[kath]

28. And the ignorant come out of the woodwork again.

Sigh.
Russert was a Mediawhore Extraordinaire, total freakin' tool of the GOOPers. Those of you who aren't in the Willfully Ignorant category, or the Freakin' Stubbornly Willfully Ignorant might want to do a little reading up.

A couple of places to start:

http://www.bartcop.com/bbc.htm

In the film we see RNC glee as the Associated Press accepts their oppo research on a Gore misstatement during the first presidential debate. During their months of filming BBC producers also observed producers for NBC's Tim Russert, among others, calling to enquire if the team had any new material. This was apparently normal practice.

"It's an amazing thing," says RNC researcher Griffin in the film, "when you have top-line producers and reporters calling you and saying 'We trust you.... We need your stuff.'"

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/5/8/13191/83603

How Tim Russert became Karl Rove's bitch
excerpts:
I remember reading that Jack Welch considered Tweety and Timmeh his best pupils - so proud of the way he "convinced" them to give up their "liberal" ways and make GE's bottom line their new god - apparently right after Karl Rove personally convinced Welch that a dumbya victory in 2000 would result in $megazillions for Welch and GE.

Welch scoffs at the idea of real journalism and has fired journalists who asked real questions that were not in GE's best intereests. His media enterprises (NBC, MSNBC) became nothing but vehicles to get republicans elected - period.
I think Welch is retired now, but Tweety and Timmeh are still his "boys."

{snip}
He {Welch}quietly began to dramatically change the way that things were done at NBC News. A link was established between the producers of the Sunday morning program Meet The Press and the opposition research team of the Republican Party. Delighted G.O.P. operatives were soon boasting that Tim Russert would go on the air just minutes after receiving their allegations of wrongdoing by Al Gore, and would repeat their charges verbatim. Russert was not functioning as a journalist; he had crossed the Rubicon and was acting as a mouthpiece for General Electric's favorite political party.

many good links in the article.


Also see the link above about how Timmeh thought it was SOOOOOO cute that he was wearing a Bush button under his lapel.

[Mabus]

79. Yes!

You go girl! Some people just don't understand or can handle the truth.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

82. And the extremists come out of the woodwork again...

[Gold Metal Flake]

105. Yes, we saw you upthread.

[No Elephants]

91. Thank you. I watched MTP every week for years and saw through Russert, but did not know links

backed me up.

[olegramps]

100. Thanks for the information

[cottonseed]

29. Cheney misses him more.

Sorry, but he failed miserably during the run up to the Iraq War.

[RagAss]

30. I don't miss him.

[palindrome]

34. Good Riddance

He pissed me off with his Hillary Gotcha questions on NY immigration, Bill's decisions on terrorism, etc... He *marred* the debates' objectivity. I think SNL's portrayal of him was more accurate than it was satire.

[Lex]

35. Hardly.

OMG.

[Arugula Latte]

37. I don't miss him, but he was better than Brokaw.

Though they are/were corporate Republican whores doing the bidding of their corporate masters, Brokaw is more blatantly in the tank for the GOP than even that paid stooge Russert was.

[HughMoran]

41. I don't

I think he's partly responsible for Bush being president and thusly me losing all of my retirement money.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

42. We've lost our connection to Jack Welch.

:cry:

[Ishoutandscream2]

45. I miss him too. Ah, the many times he talked about the Clenis

Ah, good times. And, by golly, great journalism!!!

[Forkboy]

48. I miss him about as much as a bad case of jock itch.

[AtomicKitten]

49. The saddest part of his death was the timing. He is missing an epic election.

[jillan]

54. I miss him too.

I loved how he had so much enthusiasm for his job, even if I didn't agree with him all of the time.

[genna]

58. I miss his lawyerly approach. He memorized his line of questioning and knew the material better

than the guests.

I've read the DUers that think those of us who miss him are clueless tools. I accept that criticism on its face.


I will see your clueless charge with an ideological one. If we only listened to those who agreed with us, who would we be? A: Conservative Republicans.


I generally disagree with the DLC on the third way because they figure out how to cut out the little guy and make the rich guy stand tall. But I appreciate the Democratic party being broad enough to encompass them. Or how about the industrial South/Midwest Blue Dogs who are conservative on social issues but embrace economic liberalism? The Democratic Party opens its arms to alot of different kinds of people.


I respect a good lawyer strategist who worked for Democrat Pat Moynihan (sp?) turned journalist striving to challenge people to their limits. In the same way that Chris Matthews spent his time with Jimmy Carter and worked in the peace corp, Tim Russert served his time in office trying to fight the good fight. If you think Welsh's business interests overruled journalistic principles so much so that Tim Russert was not the highest talent in a mediocre field, then so be it. I, for one, am not interested in making the media less corrupt than they are and am not trying to curse the name of everyone who turns out to be cynical or one sided.

My deal is to be the best at whatever you do. Tim Russert was the best in his field.

If you think the Iraq vote and prosecution of the Iraq war is the only shortcoming of Tim Russert, you aren't looking hard enough. Tom Brokaw does not hold a candle to Tim Russert. Russert was great at what he did. George Stephanopolous, Bob Schiefer, Wolf Blitzer and any other Sunday host are not fit to carry his shoes. There should be some new blood offered to fill in these slots.

[trumad]

65. Have you even read the examples above?

Tim Russert was a Republican tool, yes?

[npincus]

63. I miss him too... MTP no longer "must watch" for me.

I wonder what he would have done with Palin... surely had he been a presence at this stage of the election, Palin would have been under some pressure to appear on MTP. Brokaw is more of a placeholder until they can find someone with Russert's skill at nailing a subject.

[b2b55]

64. I so miss him and no one would have enjoyed this election more

[Carolina]

75. you miss Tim the whore? Hmmm, that and 16 posts

suggests you're at the wrong board.

[Raster]

67. You miss Tim "integrity is for paupers" Russert?

I don't. I've read through the delayed homage posted here and can only shake my head. Russert wasn't a great journalist, nor was he fair and impartial. When dick cheney* and chimpboy bush* needed to sell a lie to the American public, the first person they came to was Timmeh, Jack Welch's favorite presstitute.

I can understand though, how many will pine for Russert when comparing him to Brockaw. Russert, at least, had a shred of journalistic credibility--most of it pr created. Brockaw has nothing.

[alwysdrunk]

69. Me too

Russert hate on DU was ridiculous.

[Carolina]

77. ridiculous?! That bastard Russert helped sell a lie to

the low information types apparently like you. He aided and abetted the crime of the Iraq Invasion which BTW has brought NOTHING but destruction to Iraqis, American soldiers, the US TREASURY and our standing in the world.

Russert deserves all the ire many INFORMED DUers feel while your moniker alwysdrunk speaks volumes about you.

[WillyT]

70. Not The Biggest Fan Here... But Would Have LOVED To See Palin On With Tim...

Russert knew how to do follow-up!

:shrug:

[trumad]

71. Russertwould have softballed her on orders from Cheney

and at the same time, he would have been masturbating under the table.

[WillyT]

74. So... I Take It You Didn't Like Tim...

:hide::rofl::hide:

[Mabus]

72. I wish the fucker would have died in 1999

I really do. But since he didn't, I'm glad he's dead now.

I think the one person who really, really misses Russert here in the DC/MoCo area is Dick Cheney. No more long brunches for those two at the local country club after Timmy wrapped MTP on Sunday.

Besides if he were still at the helm, we wouldn't have the Rachel Maddow show.

[Name removed]

83. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[trumad]

85. About a vile, dispicable so-called journalist.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

93. You're far better than this, trumad.

You're embarassing yourself. I know you're better than this.

[Gold Metal Flake]

106. But you are not.

[Forkboy]

120. You got that backwards.

He's not the one who should be embarrassed.

[kath]

102. who did a lot of damage to our country.

"integrity is for paupers", indeed.

[Mabus]

97. Is that you Dick?

sorry you and Timmy can't enjoy your weekly brunches before Timmy ran off to either Nantucket or to a ball game with his pal Jimmy Carville and that woman he calls his wife (who also just happened to be your right hand).

And actually, in reflection, I wish the bastard would have died much sooner. If he had, maybe we would have had someone who talked about why we should have been going after bin Laden in 1998 rather than spending all that air time talking about the Clenis.

[ericgtr]

110. What a mean and hateful thing to say are you sure you aren't working for McCain?

Actually, McCain has shown more class than you and that's saying something.

[Mabus]

112. Absolutely positive. In fact, I was a Dean delegate in 2004

I've been a very active Democrat for years. I have an opinion. You disagree.

fwiw, I am personally very glad that Timmy isn't around to pull the strings this election cycle. In fact, I've told a lot of people that one of the best things that has happened this cycle is that Timmy isn't here to rein in and clamp down the news division.

P.S. If I were working for McCain I wouldn't have exposed his connection (via his sister's marriage) to JP Morgan/Morgan Stanley and questioned if the connection wasn't part of the reason he suspended his campaign to "help" with the bail out. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7334378&mesg_id=7334378

[Guava Jelly]

76. I am sorry for his familys loss. But I don't miss him.

He to often resorted to unimportant talking points instead of real issues.
He was part of the problem.

[LWolf]

78. While I regret his passing,

for his family's sake,

I don't miss Mr. "Shirley McClain said you saw a UFO over her home in Washington State" Russert.

A man who helped marginalize a candidate offering AUTHENTIC change and hope for the nation...nope, I don't miss him.

[trumad]

84. I have said it a thousand times here at DU

I think the MSM is the most dangerous thing in our society today. 24x7 cable has given these windbags the power to effect the minds of Moran America---and Tim Russert was one of the Generals in charge.

[LWolf]

87. I mostly agree.

The MSM and organized religion, hand-in-hand, keeping the masses conditioned.

As a matter of fact, I just flat out don't watch the MSM. The only time I ever have any of them on is for a presidential debate. And that just always reinforces my antipathy. I'd like to see REAL debates, not stage-managed network entertainments.

I notice that while DU generally blames the MSM for their obvious manipulation, most of DU is also addicted to watching them.

Why not, if they are so bad, turn them off and refuse to give them air time? I do, and somehow I still manage to stay informed. If enough people did, they would become irrelevant.

Meanwhile, I'd like to see some modern version of a fairness doctrine, re-regulation, and stronger and/or better enforced anti-trust laws.

[No Elephants]

86. Russert was smart and did the work of about 7 people for NBC and MSNBC. But he was

NOT objective. He was just smart enough to keep the bias unnoticeable to the casual observer--most of the time. It usually came in his follow up questions or comments--or lack thereof. Sometimes, it was obvious in the camera angle, as when Biden was on maybe a year ago and the camera kept going to the back of his head, even if the shot cut out everything and everyone else, so that we in television land would be sure to know that Biden had hair plugs, etc. (I wrote in that day and asked why they did not keep the faces of Biden and Russert on camera and just run a crawl about Biden's hair transplant instead of filming the back of his head most of the time.)

And his first important interview with Obama was an abomination. His first question was about something Harry Belafonte had said somewhere two weeks earlier. His second question was about something Harry Belafonte had said the day before. Wtf? Why on earth should Obama have to spend a lot of his first MTP interview defending all the recent remarks of a retired folk singer? Because they both have dark skin? Has John McCain ever had to defend things Merle Haggard said? (I emailed that week, too,.)

No, Russert was the worst kind of biased. Not the up front kind, but the insidious kind, where people think they are seeing objecivity, but they are getting subtly brainwashed.

[trumad]

90. Excellent post

and that was Russert's expertise--- fooling the masses with his so-called objectivity.

When he came out with his book, Russ and Me---everybody said ahhhh....what a nice guy. Thing is, right off the bat he lied in the book with the cover. Nobody ever called his father Big Russ.... it was made up for the book.

During the Bush administration there was no one who carried the water for Bush and Cheney like Russert. It has been documented in countless ways but we still have supposedly smart DUers saying that Russert was an outstanding journalist. Amazing.

[Raster]

96. Yes, trumad and they call you out if you don't swallow the bullshit.

I don't wish Russert dead. Don't have too. I do resent-the-fuck out of his so-called "objectivity." What a laugh. Like I said in a previous post, when cheney* and bushit* wanted to sell a war or a lie or a lie about a war to the American public, they came to Timmeh first, and HE ALWAYS DELIVERED. What made Timmeh so fucking dangerous was the carefully cultivated "regular guy journalist always looking out for the little guy" shtick. And NOTHING could have been further from the truth. His carefully concealed disdain for the "little guy" was a private joke that most never caught on. "Integrity is for paupers."

[Mabus]

99. Truer words have never been spoken

There was no "Big Russ" until Timmy needed to sell books. Russert was a phony who took a good show where actual journalists (note plural) quizzed the decision makers. Hence the name "Meet the Press". After Timmy took over, the show expanded to an hour to accommodate Timmy's ego and to give us those memorial moments where he could highlight his inside the Beltway friends like the Jimmy and Mary duo.

Russert took a news division and turned it into his own personal fiefdom where he rewarded those that were useful to him and his friends.

[Mabus]

101. First line of defense: send Cheney to MTP (testimony under oath)

edited to add: Excellent post. Yep, not all of us were fooled. And now back to my original response:

In Ex-Aide's Testimony, A Spin Through VP's PR

By Dana Milbank
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, January 26, 2007; Page A01

Memo to Tim Russert: Dick Cheney thinks he controls you.

This delicious morsel about the "Meet the Press" host and the vice president was part of the extensive dish Cathie Martin served up yesterday when the former Cheney communications director took the stand in the perjury trial of former Cheney chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby.

Flashed on the courtroom computer screens were her notes from 2004 about how Cheney could respond to allegations that the Bush administration had played fast and loose with evidence of Iraq's nuclear ambitions. Option 1: "MTP-VP," she wrote, then listed the pros and cons of a vice presidential appearance on the Sunday show. Under "pro," she wrote: "control message."

"I suggested we put the vice president on 'Meet the Press,' which was a tactic we often used," Martin testified. "It's our best format."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/25/AR2007012501951.html

[Essene]

92. thanks for depressing me on an already gloomy day =(

[QueenOfCalifornia]

94. ?!

You must be high.

Russert was Cheney's lap dog (Sorry to my Chihuahua, whom is much nicer than Cheney.)

Perhaps you need to read this transcript of Russert's interview of Cheney in 2003 where Cheney draws a parallel between Iraq and 9/11 and Russert lets him do it:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3080244/

Yeah, I miss Russert and I also miss the guy who used to sit next to me in a class and fart uncontrollably.

[Hun Joro]

107. Un-recommended. I kinda miss those buttons now.

Also, :puke:.

[bvar22]

116. There is so much wrong with this I don't know where to start.

Russert was a mouthpiece for the Corporate Administration, Democrats and Republicans.
He would have appeal only to those whose sole source of information was American TV.
If it didn't happen on American TV, it wasn't mentioned on MTP.

Russert was a well paid propagandist who served his masters by providing another reflection in the Echo Chamber.
He was NOT a journalist, and his deification is an embarrasssment.

:unrecommended:

[BuyingThyme]

118. Tim Russert should have died in prison

with Scooter Libby and Dick Cheney.

[krkaufman]

121. That's what I wish someone, a Democrat or anyone, would ask people like Gregory ...

... and Matthews. "Is this coverage the sort of thing Tim was talking about when he said he was looking forward to an historical campaign this Fall, a race that would be about the issues?"