In the wake of what has been a monumental election process; may the man that
will bring America back, win!
In memory of: Tim Russert; Tim was born in Buffalo, New York to Irish American
Catholic parents Elizabeth (Betty), a homemaker, and Timothy Joseph "Big Russ"
Russert, a sanitation worker and newspaper truck driver,[3][4] who were married
for 30 years and separated in 1976.[5] He was the second of four children; his
sisters are Betty Ann (B.A.), Kathleen (Kathy) and Patricia (Trish).[5] He
received a Jesuit education[6] from Canisius High School in Buffalo.
He received his B.A. in 1972 from John Carroll University and a Juris Doctor
with honors from the Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in 1976.[3] Russert
commented on Meet the Press that he went to Woodstock, "in a Buffalo Bills
jersey with a case of beer." While in law school, an official from his alma
mater, John Carroll University, called Russert to ask if he could book some
concerts for the school as he had done while a student. He agreed, but said he
would need to be paid because he was running out of money to pay for law
school. One concert that Russert booked was headlined by a then-unknown singer,
Bruce Springsteen, who charged $2,500 for the concert appearance. Russert told
this story to Jay Leno when he was a guest on the The Tonight Show on NBC on
June 6, 2006.[7]
Career
Prior to becoming host of Meet the Press, Russert worked as a special counsel,
and later as chief of staff, to Democratic U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick
Moynihan. In 1983 he became the counsel to Democratic Governor Mario Cuomo of
New York State. He was hired by NBC News' Washington bureau the following year
and became bureau chief by 1989.
Host of Meet the Press
Russert assumed the job of host of the Sunday morning program Meet the Press in
1991, and would become the longest serving host of the program. Its name was
changed to Meet the Press with Tim Russert, and, at his suggestion, went to an
hour-long format in 1992. The show also shifted to a greater focus on in-depth
interviews with high profile guests, where Russert was known especially for his
extensive preparatory research. One approach he developed was to find old
quotes or video clips that were inconsistent with guests' more recent
statements, present them on-air to his guests and then ask them to clarify
their positions. With Russert as host the show became increasingly popular,
receiving more than 4 million viewers per week, and was recognized as one of
the most important sources of political news. Time'' named Russert one of the
100 most influential people in the world in 2008, and Russert often moderated
political campaign debates.[8]
Political coverage and debates
During NBC's coverage of the 2000 presidential election, Russert calculated
possible electoral college outcomes using a white marker board (now in the
Smithsonian Institution) on the air and memorably summed up the outcome as
dependent upon "Florida, Florida, Florida."[9] TV Guide described the scene as
"one of the 100 greatest moments in TV history."[10] Russert again accurately
predicted the final battleground of the presidential elections of 2004: "Ohio,
Ohio, Ohio." On the MSNBC show Tucker, Russert predicted the battleground
states of the 2008 presidential election would be New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona
and Nevada, saying, "If Democrats can win three of those four, they can lose
Ohio and Florida, and win the presidency."[11]
"Red" states and "Blue" states
According to The Washington Post, the terms Red states and blue states were
coined by Tim Russert.[12][13] This term refers to those states of the United
States of America whose residents predominantly vote for the Republican Party
or Democratic Party presidential candidates, respectively. It began to emerge
in mainstream political discussion following the 2000 presidential election.
I appreciated every time Tim spoke in behalf of, and for the people of this
Great Nation! I miss him dearly, especially this election season. Tim had a way
of bringing a perspective to election results (and commentary) to the people;
he could break down like no one else.
This message is to help pay tribute to Tim Russert on Election Night. Help by
forwarding this link to everyone that had a love for Tim Russert’s hard work,
dedication, and love of Country! I will be Tippin’ a Rolling Rock for Tim along
with Tom Brokaw and others on Election Night.
This is a non-profit tribute to Tim Russert-. www.tippinonetotim.info
WhoopieKat.com
