Monday, July 14, 2008

Meet the Press Remembers Tony Snow

Of course, the Left-wing loons are spewing their vitriol at the expense of the late Tony Snow.

John McAdams details some of the reaction from the "compassionate" Left.

Some comments posted at Democratic Underground, that cesspool, are truly disgraceful.

McAdams directs readers to more venom at Daily Kos, that other cesspool.

Absolutely sickening.

I'm not surprised at all by those comments. In fact, I expected that. I would have been surprised if the death of Tony Snow didn't bring out their hate.

One expects these fringe sites to be filled with such trash.

What bothers me more is the very subtle disrespect of Tony Snow shown by more reputable people and media outlets.

Yesterday's Meet the Press, hosted by Tom Brokaw, ended this way:

MR. BROKAW: And now for our MEET THE PRESS Minute. Former White House Press Secretary Tony Snow died yesterday after a brave and inspirational battle against colon cancer. He was a very popular man. He appeared here on MEET THE PRESS with our late Tim Russert in February of 2007, and he spoke about the administration and the job that he loved as press secretary.

(Videotape, February 18, 2007)

MR. RUSSERT: The other day you were asked about pre-war planning and how it had been overly optimistic, and then you said this: "I'm not sure anything went wrong."

MR. TONY SNOW: Yeah.

MR. RUSSERT: Is that your view of the war in Iraq?

MR. SNOW: Well, no. I'm putting it this way. When you say "not sure anything went wrong," what I was referring to is the notion that somehow somebody's going to have perfect foresight of what's going to happen in a time of war. The old cliche is that battle plans never survive first contact with the enemy. So what happened is people came together and put together what they thought was their best estimate of was--what was likely to happen.

MR. RUSSERT: For seven years you were host of "Fox News Sunday." Do you like being on that side of the table, or this side?

MR. SNOW: You know what, this is the best job I've ever had. I, I love doing what you did, although I'm glad I'm not getting thumped by you in the ratings anymore. But I really love this job.

(End videotape)

MR. BROKAW: It's been a tough season for all of us here in Washington. Tony Snow, an elegant man, loved and respected by so many, dead at the age of 53. He was a graceful spokesman with a great taste for music. He had strong political views, but he had friends across the political spectrum in this city and beyond. He went out as he lived, with great conviction and with great dignity. And his family is in our thoughts and prayers this morning.

It was a poignant sight to see Russert and Snow together.

Although Brokaw spoke highly of Snow, I don't like the fact that Brokaw highlighted his "strong political views." He noted that in spite of his partisanship, he still managed to have friends across the political spectrum, as if he overcame some sort of personal flaw.

A few weeks ago, when Brokaw talked of his colleague Tim Russert, there was no mention of his partisanship in any negative sense. Russert certainly harbored strong political views. He worked for Democrats as Snow worked for Republicans, yet somehow Russert was always fair and never let his own "strong political views" play a role in his work as a journalist.

In short, Russert was fair and impartial. Snow wasn't. That, of course, is not the case.

As I said, it's a very subtle jab. I acknowledge that Brokaw had some very kind words to say about Tony Snow, but there was that underlying disrespect for Snow's conservatism.

It's similar to the Associated Press choosing to take a swipe at Snow:

With a quick-from-the-lip repartee, broadcaster's good looks and a relentlessly bright outlook — if not always a command of the facts — he became a popular figure around the country to the delight of his White House bosses.

He didn't have a "command of the facts."

That statement was unnecessary, not because it was rather nasty but because it was wrong.

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