Tim Russert's Power Spin

Mouthpiece for the Washington, D.C./ Jesuit power structure against electoral choice- particularly the decentralizing Libertarian Party

http://www.lewrockwell.com/kramer/kramer16.html

(excerpt)

Predictably, Russert was lauded by the entire political and media establishment for his career: for being an icon; for being impartial; for not being afraid to ask tough questions.

In my last column, I wrote that politics at high levels of government basically consists of a symbiotic relationship between politicians, bureaucrats, and journalists and the ruling elite, where the politicians, bureaucrats, and journalists earn higher incomes than they could elsewhere on the market through voluntary trade (and receive other perks which, depending on what they’re after, include things like celebrity; prestige; influence; and indulging their control-freak personalities by forcibly running others’ lives), in exchange for perpetuating the system (such as the military-industrial complex, the pharmaceutical-industrial complex, and the Federal Reserve) by which the elite profit at the expense of the average person.

Perhaps nobody profited from that relationship more than Tim Russert. The very fact that the establishment media is praising him – and that he reigned over a mainstream, influential program like Meet the Press for 17 years, is proof that the praise of what a great journalist he was is false. As Lew Rockwell quipped, rather than asking tough questions of politicians, Russert acted more like their butler or valet.

Any LRC reader who’s been around since last year remembers how Russert treated Ron Paul last Dec., when he had him as a guest, after ignoring him all year, only when Ron’s popularity grew to the point that he could no longer be ignored. Instead of mixing in the usual softball questions, he pelted Ron with rapid-fire questions for 30 straight minutes, sometimes not even letting Ron finish answering one question before interrupting him with the next. He rarely (if ever) looked Ron in the eye. He cast Ron’s advocacy for amending the constitution as being inconsistent for a constitutionalist. When Ron called the so-called Civil War unnecessary, Russert claimed we’d still have slavery without it. In short, Ron was treated quite differently than most of Russert’s guests.

What some newer LRC readers may not know is that something like that happened before.

"I resent the question."

Harry Browne, nominee of the Libertarian Party in 2000, was (also reluctantly) invited by Russert to be on Meet the Press that year – which, to the best of my knowledge, is the first time, before or since, that the LP candidate has appeared on the program.

With all of this talk about Russert the past few days, I couldn't resist digging up my tape and revisiting what happened.

First, the background information: Russert gave third-party candidates Ralph Nader of the Green Party and Pat Buchanan of the Reform Party each an entire half-hour segment on Meet the Press earlier in 2000.

Like Ron Paul in 2007–2008, Harry had received literally 1–2% as much mainstream media coverage in 1999–2000 as the major candidates, and Lexxus-Nexxus reported at one point late in 2000 that Buchanan had received 60 times more coverage than Browne that year, and Nader had received 80 times more. Browne also had about $2 million to spend, while Buchanan had $12 million – partially because Buchanan accepted the federal matching funds the party had earned from Perot’s 1996 showing, while Browne refused what he had earned from 1996, although it was significantly less than Buchanan’s amount.

Despite all of those disadvantages, Harry was the most popular candidate on the Internet that year (which admittedly meant less in 2000 than it does now) and – more importantly – was tied or above Buchanan (who always polled lower than Nader) in almost every major poll all year. By Sept., Harry was not only at least tied with Buchanan nationwide (depending on the poll), but he was out-polling both Nader and Buchanan in several states, and was also polling higher than the margin of error between Bush and Gore in several states.

During an Oct. edition of Meet the Press, Russert announced that he was holding a third-party debate on the program the following Sunday between Nader and Buchanan.

Given his accomplishments that year, Harry set out to discover why he hadn’t been invited too, which he described thusly in his campaign journal, which was sent regularly throughout the year to about 30,000 subscribers, "This morning the campaign released an email on LibertyWire, telling supporters that we've been rebuffed by Meet the Press. The program has scheduled a debate for this Sunday between Ralph Nader and Pat Buchanan, and didn't include me. When Jim Babka, our very able press secretary, called Meet the Press to plead our case, he was rebuffed by the show's producer – who said it just wasn't ‘in the cards’ that I would ever be on the show, even though I'm running even with Buchanan in the polls. When Jim asked what we had to do to qualify to be on the show, she said she resented the question.

"Our email message asked people to blitz the show with emails and phone calls, requesting my presence. The first day at least 600 emails reached the show, and the phone calls overloaded the voice mail system.

"On top of that, a week ago Tim Russert was on C-SPAN's Washington Journal. During the show, Brian Lamb mentioned that C-SPAN had received over 150 emails from viewers wanting to ask Tim Russert why he didn't have me on his show. He gave the usual lame explanation that they couldn't have all 255 registered presidential candidates on, and so they focused on the two with the most support. Then a caller pointed out that only seven candidates were on enough state ballots to win, and that I had as much support as Buchanan does."

That was a shockingly dishonest answer by Russert, and no one in his position could possibly be that stupid: Yes, there were about 250 presidential candidates officially recognized by the FEC in 2000, which meant only that they had filed the necessary paperwork. But only 15 of those were on the ballot in even one state; only five besides Bush and Gore were on enough ballots to mathematically be able to win the Electoral College; and Browne was on 49 state ballots – more than any other third-party candidate.

Harry continued, "Apparently, the powers-that-be decided to throw in the towel – sort of. Two days later, the producer called Jim Babka and invited me on the show. But instead of having a half-hour to myself, as Nader and Buchanan have each had during the campaign, and instead of being on with Nader and/or Buchanan, I would be on with Howard Phillips and John Hagelin. This allows Meet the Press to say they've given me a platform, while at the same time making the point that I'm in the bottom tier of candidates – making their decision to have Buchanan and Nader on alone seem justified.

"So here I am. Although I've done two debates with Hagelin and Phillips this year, this is the first show that's treated me as one of three lower-level candidates – something that happened regularly in 1996."

Harry didn’t mention that Hagelin and Phillips, with whom he was forced to share his time, were each polling at 0.1–0.2%, while, again, he was polling 1–2% nationally – at least tied with Buchanan, and 3–5% – in third place behind Bush and Gore, in some individual states. (I’m not arguing against Russert having Hagelin and Phillips as guests; in fact, as presidential candidates who were on enough state ballots to mathematically be able to win the Electoral College, he should have. The point is that Browne clearly had much more support than them, and if he was going to be lumped together with anyone, it should’ve been with Nader and Buchanan.)

What follows is a transcript of Harry’s appearance on Meet the Press on Oct. 22, 2000. While not all of Russert’s questions were hostile or misleading, some of the questions show how misleading he could be, and I’ve included them all for completeness and because Harry was so magnificent. The segment was 19 minutes; as with Ron Paul last year, there were no commercials. I didn’t watch it with a stopwatch, but it seemed like the time was roughly divided equally between the three candidates. If that’s accurate, then Harry got less than seven minutes – about one-third of what Buchanan and Nader got if their segments had commercials and less than one-fourth if theirs didn’t (which is more likely).

RUSSERT: "This is from your party brochure: ' . . . widespread gun ownership will make neighborhoods safer.'

'It's time to re-legalize drugs and let people take responsibility for themselves.'

"Some Americans watching that will step back and say, 'Is he really for gun-toting people roaming the streets providing free drugs for everyone?' "

BROWNE: "Well, we have gun-toting people roaming the streets; they're called criminals. They have no regard for gun laws whatsoever. They don't buy their guns in ways that involve background checks, or registration, or licensing, or any of these things. Those gun laws apply only to you, and me, and to other innocent citizens. I want to live in a neighborhood where a criminal has to fear that somebody in the neighborhood owns a gun when he starts deciding which house he's going to break into.

"As far as the drug laws are concerned, before we had drug laws in America, we didn't have the widespread drug problems we have today, because the pharmaceutical companies ran the drug business – not criminal gangs in the inner cities. All the Drug War has brought us is widespread drug use, with gangs preying upon children at schools; all the Drug War has brought us is a hundred or two-hundred thousand innocent people in prison who have no business there, making it impossible to keep the murders, rapists and child-molesters in prison, so they get out on early release and plea-bargains."

RUSSERT (interrupting): "So if anybody wanted heroin, or speed, or marijuana, they could have it?"

BROWNE: "When it was perfectly legal for a child to walk into a store and buy heroin, children didn't walk into stores and buy heroin, because number one: it wasn't forbidden fruit; and number two: nobody was preying upon them in schools; they no interest in it whatsoever. Bayer sold heroin in this country as a pain-reliever and sedative. It was perfectly safe. But once it was turned over to criminals, it became a very dangerous drug – just as bathtub gin was a very dangerous drug in the 1920s, when gin was illegal. Prohibition doesn't work, it has never worked; all it does is tear our country apart, and we have got to end it. If I'm elected president somehow, on my first day in office, I will pardon unconditionally everyone who's in federal prison on a non-violent drug offense."

RUSSERT: "The defense budget is about $290 billion a year. How much would you spend?"

BROWNE: "About $50 billion a year could defend this country better than it does now. But we would not have the gigantic national offense. We would not have the ability to annihilate other countries. We would not have the ability to meddle in other countries' affairs, and we would not be putting your children at risk of fighting and dying in a foreign war, or terrorists attacking your city. We would be the beacon of liberty for the entire world, and not the world's policeman."

"We have a $1.8 trillion government. Government at all levels is taking nearly half the national income. It's meddling in your bank account. It's monitoring your e-mail. And the question people need to ask is, 'Do you want smaller government?' And if you want smaller government, all of these grand proposals to reform our schools, to reform our healthcare system, are not going to work, and you know they're not going to work. And you know that we're not going to be able to close the borders, that people are going to get into this country no matter what the government does; the government hasn't kept drugs out, it hasn't stamped out poverty – "

RUSSERT (interrupting): "So open up the borders to immigration completely?"

BROWNE: "The borders are open! Why is it so hard for people to understand that anyone who wants to get into this country today gets into this country?"

RUSSERT (interrupting again): "And anyone who is here illegally you would make a citizen?"

BROWNE: "I don't care whether or not they're citizens; what I care about is that, if we do have programs to close the borders, once again it will affect you more than it will affect the immigrants. They will make you carry an identity card. You will be stopped by policemen and asked to prove that you are a citizen. Your employer will be sanctioned for inadvertently letting an illegal immigrant go to work in your company. It will not keep the immigrants out, but it will be one more nail in the coffin of freedom in the United States for American citizens."

"The answer is to shut down the welfare state. Shut down the welfare state, and people will filter themselves out. They will only come here for the land of opportunity. If we leave the welfare state intact but close the borders, then we're going to have less freedoms in the United States, and we're still going to have a welfare state, and we're still going to have big government, and were still going to have government prying into every aspect of our lives, as we do now. The answer is to reduce government. We never solve problems through government. We haven't solved the education problem. We haven't solved the healthcare problem. We haven't solved the drug problem. We haven't solved the poverty problem. We haven't solved any of these problems. What makes anybody think that now we're going to close the borders and we're going to solve the immigration problem?"

RUSSERT: "Mr. Browne, abortion?"

BROWNE: "I want to abide by the constitution. The federal government has no business legislating on common crimes of any kind; there should be no federal laws against murder, rape, hate crimes, discrimination, any of these things, because law enforcement was meant to be a state and local function. And what we need to do is to get the federal government completely out of this question; it should not subsidize abortions; it should not outlaw abortions; this should be left to the states, and people can gravitate to the states that they find most compatible."

RUSSERT (addressing the wasted vote question): "Mr. Browne, would it make a difference to a libertarian if either George Bush or Al Gore was president?"

BROWNE: "No. You know, I know, everybody watching this show knows that four years from today, whichever of them is elected, government will be bigger, more expensive, more obtrusive, and more oppressive. If you vote Republican or Democrat, you are giving up. You’re saying ‘I’m never going to be free. America will never be a free country again. I will never get smaller government. So I’m just going to vote for the one I think will take me to hell at the slowest-possible rate.’"

It’s perfectly legitimate for Russert to challenge anyone, including Harry, on his views – although, had Harry been on for 30 minutes, Russert would’ve had time to engage in more of a conversation and make sure none of his questions sounded too hostile or one-sided – had Russert wanted to do that.

But to be the great journalist his memorials purport him to be, he would’ve had to similarly play Devil’s Advocate with all of his guests. When does anyone remember Russert ever challenging a statist, establishment politician not on their personal inconsistencies; nor with trivial, contradictory evidence to their views; but with fundamental questions about their support for, and the legitimacy of, things like the Drug War; the income tax (or having a federal government the size it was at the time he was conducting the interview, regardless of how it was funded); Social Security; the military-industrial complex; the pharmaceutical-industrial complex; the Federal Reserve; etc.? To ask the question is to answer it.

The assertions about Russert doing thorough homework on each guest, looking for inconsistencies; and about him not appearing partisan in favor of either Republicans or Democrats, are true to the best of my knowledge. But they’re also not very important; the appearance of two parties is an illusion, and grilling a certain candidate or politician on previous inconsistencies may call into question the integrity or consistency of that particular person, but it doesn’t raise fundamental questions about the system. That allowed Russert to maintain the illusion of being a "tough interviewer" while no more fundamentally challenging the system, which his career was built on perpetuating, than any other journalist.

Harry wrote about his appearance in his campaign journal, "When the show ends, for some reason all four of us remain seated at the table on the set. A waiter brings in orange juice and several selections of food. Russert starts eating and there's some small talk. I decide to light into Russert, asking him ‘So why didn't you have me on with Nader and Buchanan – knowing that I had as much support as Buchanan?’

"In the give and take that follows, I get the expected responses from Russert: ‘You're here now, aren't you?’ ‘We can't have five guests on at once.’ (Courtesy restrains me from saying that he knows and I know that Phillips and Hagelin don't count.) ‘I'm the only Sunday host who's given any attention to third parties.’ And so on.

"I say he's overlooking the one authentic man-bites-dog story of this campaign. A celebrity candidate, Pat Buchanan, has received $16 million in taxpayer money and wide press coverage, while a complete unknown who turned down federal money and has about 1/50 the press coverage is running even with him in the polls. Isn't that news? Russert says it is, and that's why I'm here. (It isn't why I'm here; if it were, he would have said something about it on the air.)

"Finally, I ask him why he doesn't point out publicly that the only reason America seems to be a two-party country is because the two parties in power have maintained that power by using the force of government to impose ballot-access laws, limit campaign donations, raid the government treasury to run their campaigns, and exempt the Debate Commission from campaign and income-tax laws so it can promote the politics of the two main parties. Russert agrees whole-heartedly but doesn't answer my question as to why he never points this out on the air.

"I tell him that I bear no hard feelings but that I'm baffled as to how Meet the Press makes its decisions regarding what is news."

I’m not: Harry Browne raised fundamental questions about the system. Russert’s job as an establishment gatekeeper was to distract people with trivialities; personal foibles of individual candidates; and the phony right-left, Republican-Democrat paradigm; and to make sure that views like Browne’s never got a mainstream hearing. When, as happened with Ron Paul last year, Harry proved to have enough support to cajole Russert into having him as a guest, Russert’s job then was to give him as little time as possible, make him seem as fringe as possible, and make him and his views seem as nutty and disreputable as possible.

Tim Russert No Friend of the 4th Amendment

Jesuit Tool was an apologist for Georgetown University's 'PATRIOT' Act FISA Tel Co Treason against 4th and 1st Amendment

http://www.crooksandliars.com/2007/10/28/tim-russert-accuses-senator-dodd-of-using-fisa-hold-for-political-purposes/

(excerpt)

"... on Meet The Press Tim Russert, armed with all the Bush talking points, ambushed Dodd and directly accused him of using the FISA issue for purely political purposes."

Subverting the 4th Amendment Subverts the 1st Amendment via creating a climate of fear.

Thanks, Tim Russert, from my father and his son

By PETER T. KELLY -- pedrokelly@gmail.com
-- director of Student Services at St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens.

AP Photo/Meet The Press, Alex Wong

http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/inbox/story/574642.html

Luke Russert, son of Tim Russert, touches the empty chair that was his father's on the set of "Meet the Press" on June 15 at the NBC studios in Washington, D.C.

In the fall of 2005, during halftime of the Boston College-Florida State football game, I sought shelter underneath BC's Alumni Stadium. It was not an ideal autumn day for football in New England. The skies were overcast and there had been a steady rainfall throughout the first half. At halftime under the stands, I was a wet spectator among a sea of maroon ponchos and yellow raincoats.

A few feet away -- standing equally alone and wet, checking messages on his cellphone and caring little about his unkempt appearance -- stood a man who on first glance looked like someone I knew. It was Tim Russert -- whom of course I didn't know at all, but I felt like I did. Like so many others who watched Meet the Press religiously on Sundays, I felt some connection to Russert.

A fellow Irish-Catholic and unabashed BC supporter like Russert, I felt the urge to walk over to him and introduce myself. I figured I could tell him how much I enjoyed reading his recent book, Big Russ & Me. I figured I could tell him that I read his book in December 2004, a difficult period for my family -- the first holiday season since my mother succumbed to ALS in July 2004. Understandably, my father, a widower after almost 40 years of marriage, was still not dealing well with the loss of Mom. But Russert's book was helpful to both of us.

I distinctly remember reading aloud to Dad what Father John Sturn, prefect of discipline at Russert's Jesuit high school, said to the future host of Meet the Press: ''Russert, mercy is for God. I deliver justice.'' I figured Russert would enjoy hearing how hard my father, himself a product of a Jesuit education, laughed when he heard this line.

I figured I could tell Russert how helpful his chapter entitled ''Loss'' was to both my father and me. I could tell him that I had paraphrased his own words in asking my father, 'Dad, if God had come to you 40 years ago and said, `Bob, I'm going to make you an offer. I will give you a beautiful wife for 40 years, and together you will have a wonderful family and happy life, but then it will be time for Mary to come home.' You would have made that deal in a second, right?'' My father didn't need to respond; the answer was evident in his slight smile and watery eyes.

I could have taken the opportunity that day in September 2005 to relate to Russert my conversations with my own father. I could have thanked him for helping to be my father's counselor without even knowing it. I chose not to, however, because he seemed content in the moment, quietly texting messages on his phone. He was there, after all, simply as a football fan and a father -- for all I knew, he was exchanging notes on the first half with his son, Luke, then a Boston College sophomore.

With Russert's sudden passing on Friday, I thought again of my chance to meet and thank him. But I don't regret that I left Russert alone that day. Sometimes we all deserve the occasional quiet moments to ourselves.

According to published reports, a television reporter asked Russert at his son's graduation from BC last month whether he was interested in commenting on the recent news that Sen. Edward Kennedy had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. The proud father declined, saying simply, ``Today I just want to be a dad.''

I'd like to send a belated thank you to a father whose words of wisdom helped two strangers at their time of loss. Thanks, Tim Russert, from my father and his son. May our gratitude be of some comfort to your family at their time of loss.

About the St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Thomas_University_(Florida)

(excerpt)

The St. Thomas University School of Law is one of only three accredited Catholic law schools south of Georgetown University’s School of Law in Washington, DC. The School of Law at St. Thomas was fully accredited by the American Bar Association in February 1995, and offers the Juris Doctor degree (J.D.) as well as the Masters of Law (LL.M).

St. Thomas has given its graduates the confidence and skills necessary for success in a variety of fields. Among notable graduates are: Alex Penelas, the former Mayor of Miami-Dade County; Andy Elisburg, Vice President of Operations for the Miami Heat; Christina Fernandez, Chief Marshall for the Southern Region U.S. Marshals Service; and John Dooner, CEO of Interpublic Group of Companies.

St. Thomas has an enrollment of 2,520 students - 1,171 in the traditional undergraduate program, 731 in its graduate program and 618 in the law school. Students come to St. Thomas from 42 states and nearly 50 foreign countries. As of 2008 St. Thomas University has an endowment that stand at $23.4 million.[1]

St. Thomas' Sports Administration programs was one of the first in the country. The program has produced many of the leaders in the world of sports.

The college itself was established by the Augustinian Friars order.

Tim Russert was a friend to the Jesuits

From The Dallas Morning News

http://religionblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2008/06/tim-russert-was-a-friend-to-th.html

2:48 PM Fri, Jun 20, 2008 | Permalink

Bruce Tomaso E-mail News tips

Tim Russert was a graduate of two Jesuit educational institutions -- Canisius High School in Buffalo, N.Y., and John Carroll University in Cleveland.

The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest and author, writes on the American magazine blog that the late NBC newsman "was a great friend of the Society of Jesus, and one of those alums of whom we were the most proud. ... Russert seemed to embody a certain ideal of Jesuit education: the working-class youth who, through hard work and faith, contributed to his family, to his church and to the common good, doing it all with a sense of humor... "

Russert, he writes, received honorary degrees "from seemingly every Jesuit college and university, including Boston College, Fordham University, Loyola College in Maryland, Santa Clara University, The College of the Holy Cross..."

Russert, he adds, was "perhaps the most popular of all commencement speakers in the Jesuit world."

Tim Russert According to Wolf Blitzer CNN

From CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer

Watch CNN's Wolf Blitzer and David Bohrman discuss what transpired between Sens. Obama and McCain at Tim Russert's funeral mass Wednesday.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/06/18/blitzer-russert-funeral-brings-presidential-foes-together/

WASHINGTON (CNN) – It was a pretty amazing sight. John McCain and Barack Obama came to Tim Russert’s funeral mass today here in Washington. The fact that they took time out from their campaigns to do so was already impressive, and certainly a lovely tribute to Tim. But they also did more. They wound up sitting right next to each other during the 90 minute service.

Before the service started, they were chatting rather amiably and intensely for 15-20 minutes. Those of us who were invited to the Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown were impressed that Tim, even in his tragic and untimely death, was able to bring these two presidential candidates together.

It was a powerful statement of Tim’s unique role here in Washington.

Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, who presided over the gathering, warmly welcomed McCain and Obama. He spoke eloquently about Tim’s faith, family and journalistic profession.

So did Tim’s remarkable 22-year-old son, Luke, who delivered some beautiful Words of Remembrance. He told them what his dad would have told them: the American public wants their presidential candidates to discuss the most important issues of the day and not get bogged down with trivial personal attacks.

Luke also said that his dad was often so irritated when politicians refused to acknowledge they had changed their minds on important policy issues. There’s nothing wrong, Luke said, in someone’s changing his or her mind. He’s right of course. Obama and McCain were clearly paying attention.

I suspect those strong words will have an impact on these two presidential candidates in the coming weeks and months.

Filed under: Barack Obama • John McCain • Wolf Blitzer

Tim Russert According to GW Bush

Tim Russert Honorary Jesuit

By James Martin, S.J. at America: The National Catholic Weekly

http://www.americamagazine.org/blog/entry.cfm?blog_id=2&id=9C29EA3D-5056-8960-32A609F09CD28D83

In the midst of the avalanche of news coverage of Tim Russert's death comes the inevitable reference to his "working-class" Catholic background, his early education by the Sisters of Mercy, as well as his Jesuit education at Canisius High School in Buffalo, New York and John Carroll University in Cleveland, Ohio. One commentator the other night said he was "raised by Jesuits," which not only unfairly neglects his own remarkable parents, but also makes it sound suspiciously like "raised by wolves."

What may not be known by the average reader is the enormous esteem in which Mr. Russert was held within the Jesuit world. This is not hyperbole. Indeed, this weekend I attended a good friend's Final Vow ceremony, presided over by the New England Provincial, who added Mr. Russert's name in the Prayers of the Faithful. No one was surprised by the mention of his name at Mass: he was a great friend of the Society of Jesus, and one of those alums of whom we were the most proud.

As a testimony to that affection, Russert was a regular recipient of honorary doctorates from seemingly every Jesuit college and university, including Boston College, Fordham University, Loyola College in Maryland, Santa Clara University, The College of the Holy Cross, and on and on, as well as perhaps the most popular of all commencement speakers in the Jesuit world.

This weekend one Jesuit recounted that Russert once told him that one of his favorite activities, after watching the Buffalo Bills play, was giving commencement addresses at Jesuit schools.

Russert seemed to embody a certain ideal of Jesuit education: the working-class youth who, through hard work and faith, contributed to his family, to his church and to the common good, doing it all with a sense of humor, even about his own Jesuit past. He delighted in recounting the comment of John Sturm, S.J., prefect of discipline at Canisius. When the young Russert asked Fr. Sturn for mercy after a minor infraction, the prefect said, "Mercy is for God. I deliver justice!"

The "man for others" to quote Pedro Arrupe, S.J., is an oft-used expression to describe the ideal Jesuit alumnus. (Today it's the "man and woman for others" or the "man and woman for and with others.") Father Arrupe, the former superior general of the Society of Jesus, meant this is as a real challenge: it was not simply about "being nice" but being a person of self-sacrifice, a person who tried his or her best to emulate Christ in his labors and loves.

Russert seemed to embody this ideal in his profession and his personal life. He wasn't perfect, but he sacrificed and worked diligently to serve his country, his family, and his God.

It seems fitting today that his funeral Mass will be celebrated at the Jesuits' Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown. Presiding at Mass will be another graduate of a Jesuit high school and college, Theodore Cardinal McCarrick.

R.I.P.

James Martin, SJ

Comments (1) | 509 Views

Tim Russert Started Young

http://goodjesuitbadjesuit.blogspot.com/2008/06/i-deliver-justice-canisius-high-school.html

http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/chc/wmy2008/Celebrities/tim_russert.html

In the seventh grade at St. Bonaventure School in Buffalo, New York, Sister Mary Lucille, a Sister of Mercy, was both impressed and yet concerned by--shall we say--my excessive energy in class. She expressed that in her words, "We have to channel that energy, Timothy," because I was prone to mischief. One day she told me, "I'm going to start a school newspaper and you're going to be the editor. This means that you have to give out assignments, you have to edit the copy, you have to write your own articles, you have to go around and interview students, teachers, and administrative people, and publish the paper. You have to distribute it. You have to decide whether you're going to charge for it, or if you're going to have a fundraiser to underwrite the cost." It became this extraordinary project that I threw myself into and so did all my friends. If left us little time to get in trouble because we were so devoted to the paper, called The Bonette after St. Bonaventure School. Then she said, "If you don't keep up your grades we're not going to be able to do the second edition of the newspaper." That made us all committed to studying harder. It became a real class project.

On November 22, 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated. We did a special edition of the paper and sent a copy to the new president, President Johnson; to Mrs. Jacqueline Kennedy; and to Robert Kennedy, the attorney general. Some months later we received personal responses from all of them, which changed our lives. Here we were, only months ago with nothing and wondering whether or not school was worth our while--whether school could be fun, whether school was meaningful--and along came this young nun who created this entity called a school newspaper that we became deeply involved in. We learned how to report, how to communicate, how to write; and then, on top of all that, people we watched on television, people who were so far removed from our ordinary lives, suddenly acknowledged not only our existence, but our work. From that day forward I was determined that I would have a career in journalism/public service...

We continued our newspaper in eighth grade. I was going on to high school and Sister Lucille suggested I go to Canisius High School, the Jesuit school in Buffalo. I said, "Sister, it's downtown, where all the rich kids go, sons of doctors and lawyers." My dad was a truck driver and left school in tenth grade to fight in World War II...Sister Lucille insisted that I take the entrance exam, which I did. I won a partial scholarship that helped with the tuition because we couldn't afford it...

The person who became most important to me at Canisius High School was Father John Sturm, the Prefect of Discipline. He was a former Golden Gloves boxer who entered the Jesuits, and he was tough. He would focus on the few kids who came from the south side of the city--there was only a handful of us from South Buffalo. Once when I got in trouble I said, "Father don't you have any mercy?" He grabbed me and replied, "Russert, mercy's for God. I deliver justice." I remember it like it was yesterday. Although I knew how to write, how to report, how to observe, I learned that unless one has discipline, all of it can be lost, and Father Sturm taught me discipline.

So now I have created the Sister Mary Lucille/Father Sturm Award, a cash prize that is provided to a Buffalo Catholic school teacher each year who has made a difference in a child's life by acting as a mentor...

I know that if I had not had the intervention and support of Sister Lucille and Father Sturm, I would not be the moderator of Meet the Press.

Excerpted from The Person Who Changed My Life: Prominent Americans Recall Their Mentors. Matilda Raffa Cuomo, Editor, with foreword by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Tim Russert on the Internet

Tim Russert's Jesuit-ical education, with its aversion to the mass use of new technologies allowing for the decentralization of spreading the written word, was evident through the arguments he presented in his final show, against people getting information from the internet,

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25137286/

(excerpt)

Msnbc: Tim, www.fightthesmears.com is a web site launched by the Barack Obama campaign to combat potentially damaging rumor about the candidate and his wife, Michelle. Is this necessary? How big of a problem is this really?

Tim Russert: It’s amazing how much the Internet has changed our lives. People get emails that make accusations without foundation and they are circulated around the country within seconds and suddenly become topics of conversations around water coolers or in lunchrooms.

I remember being in Indianapolis covering the Indiana primary and a man came up to me and said he wasn’t going to vote for Senator Obama because he was very concerned about the comments made by Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s pastor. I said, “That’s interesting. As a reporter, I’m curious what comments particularly bothered you?” He said, “Well, I can’t think of any that come to mind, but I also read on the Internet that he’s a Muslim.” And I said, “Now wait a minute. You can’t have both. You can’t be offended by his Christian minister and then say he’s a Muslim. You’ve got to pick one.”

But that just underscores what we’re dealing with in this modern era.

Now I’m told there’s a counter organization with a very similar name that is going to be positioned and posted to spread the rumors, so that people that go to the Internet to get clarification will go to the wrong web site and get confused.

It’s a virus. You have bloggers on both sides, liberals and conservatives, Republicans and Democrats all trying to utilize this vehicle without any kind of fact checking and without any kind of editorial control.

Msnbc: Given the way people use the Internet, do you wonder if there are going to be some things said or done during the course of this campaign that will be very unsettling?

Russert: That’s what we have to be conscious of and vigilant against, particularly at the end of the campaign as things are put out there. We’ve already had a few fake videos with different words dubbed in and people say, “This must be true because I saw it on the Internet.”

Tim Russert's University a Reaction to Bismarck's Kulterkampf of Wlodimir Ledochowski's Youthful Days

John Carroll University founded as St. Ignatius College by Jesuits expelled from Germany by Bismarck's Kulterkampf


[excerpted from below]

The Jesuits who founded St. Ignatius College were exiles from Germany, forced out by Bismarck's Kulturkampf. ... The principal instrument of this education was the classical course of seven years, in which the first three years were devoted to learning languages as necessary tools. The student was then considered prepared for university work. The next four years were devoted to the study of classical literature and Latin and Greek prose and poetry, and to developing the ability to express one's self in these languages, as well as in the vernacular, orally and in writing. The final year was devoted to philosophy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Carroll_University

History

The main building of St. Ignatius College, later to become John Carroll University. The building was the centerpiece of the original West 30th Street campus.

John Carroll University was founded in 1886 under the title of St. Ignatius College as a "college for men." It has been in continuous operation as a degree-granting institution since that time. Founded as the 19th of 28 Jesuit colleges and universities in the United States, it was founded 97 years after Georgetown University.^[2]

The Jesuits who founded St. Ignatius College were exiles from Germany, forced out by Bismarck's Kulturkampf. They brought with them the traditional structure of the Jesuit college as an extension of the apostolate of the religious community to prepare the student morally as well as intellectually. The principal instrument of this education was the classical course of seven years, in which the first three years were devoted to learning languages as necessary tools. The student was then considered prepared for university work. The next four years were devoted to the study of classical literature and Latin and Greek prose and poetry, and to developing the ability to express one's self in these languages, as well as in the vernacular, orally and in writing. The final year was devoted to philosophy. There were also electives in the sciences, history, and geography, as well as other subjects. If the student completed only six years, a certificate was given. Completion of the year of philosophy made the student eligible for the baccalaureate degree, which the college was empowered to grant when it was chartered in 1890 (State of Ohio 1890). The first two degrees were awarded in 1895.^[3]

In 1923, the College was renamed John Carroll University, after the first archbishop of the Catholic Church in the United States and founder of fellow Jesuit institution Georgetown University. In 1935, it was moved from its original location on the west side in the Ohio City neighborhood of Cleveland to its present site in University Heights, a suburb 10 miles east of downtown Cleveland. The city had been renamed from Idlewood during the construction of the campus.^[4]

Bismarck's Kulterkampf with Mieczyslaw Ledochowski

Wlodimir Ledochowski- 29th Jesuit Order Superior General
elected February 11, 1915 - served until his death December 13, 1942

Wlodimir Ledochowski's 20th Century Counter Reformation Continuation

Wlodimir Ledochowski's Plausible Childhood Inspiration

John Hagee's Apparent Lack of Interest In History

Tim Russert Dead

Underscored the Jesuit influence within the U.S. mass media

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Russert

(excerpt)

Timothy John Russert, Jr. (May 7, 1950 – June 13, 2008)^[1] was an American journalist who hosted NBC's Meet the Press. He was NBC News' Washington Bureau Chief and hosted a weekly interview program on MSNBC Tim Russert. He was a frequent correspondent and guest on NBC's The Today Show and Hardball. He co-hosted the network's presidential Election Night coverage and presented the polling results of the NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey on the NBC Nightly News. Russert died from a sudden heart attack on June 13, 2008.^[2]

Early life

Born in Buffalo, New York to Irish American Catholic parents, he received a Jesuit education.^[3] Russert was an alum of Canisius High School in Buffalo, New York and a graduate of John Carroll University and Cleveland-Marshall College of Law at Cleveland State University. Russert admitted on Meet the Press that, during the Vietnam war, he went to Woodstock "in a Buffalo Bills jersey with a case of beer." Russert was admitted to the bar in New York and the District of Columbia. He served as counselor in New York Governor Mario Cuomo's office in Albany in 1983 to 1984 and was chief of staff to Democratic Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan from 1977 to 1982. An avid fan of the American Football team the Buffalo Bills, Russert usually closed Sunday broadcasts during the football season with some type of pro-Bills comment. He had also ended his show by mentioning the successes of Boston College football, baseball, and hockey.

Career

Russert graduated from law school and worked on New York Democrat Daniel Patrick Moynihan's Senatorial campaign in 1976. He later worked on New York Democrat Mario Cuomo's gubernatorial campaign in 1982. Russert was hired by NBC at their Washington Bureau in 1984. He became Washington Bureau Chief four years later.^[4]

Russert calculated possible United States Electoral College outcomes on a marker board on the air during NBC's coverage of the 2000 U.S. presidential election. Four years later, Russert again accurately predict the final battleground of the presidential elections: "Ohio, Ohio, Ohio." He often moderated political debates.

On MSNBC's 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."^[5]

The marker board was a recurring prop used by Russert during NBC election night broadcasts.

http://www.wisdomofourfathers.com/

http://www.canisiushigh.org/alumni.cfm?subpage=14

(excerpt)

Tim Russert - those two words say a great deal about Canisius High School. On May 10, 2004, Mr. Russert will publish his warm memoir, Big Russ & Me - Father and Son: Lessons of Life. The website for the book describes it as follows:

Over the last two decades, Tim Russert has become one of the most trusted and admired figures in American television journalism. Throughout his career he has spent time with presidents and popes, world leaders and newsmakers, celebrities and sports heroes, but one person stands out from the rest in terms of his strength of character, modest grace, and simple decency—Russert’s dad, Big Russ.

Big Russ & Me movingly and vividly portrays Buffalo, the Catholic Church, and Jesuit education with an accuracy and subtlety I have not seen elsewhere. Mr. Russert, a 1968 graduate of Canisius High School, devotes to his alma mater two chapters, “Canisius High School” and “Discipline.” Tim paints a compelling picture of the school and the experiences in Jesuit high schools everywhere during that era. Father Alvin Hufnagel, Fathers James and Frank Redmond, the Acrions, and many other familiar names and situations are brought to life with Tim’s fascinating recollections. Father John Sturm was the person who influenced him “more than any other at Canisius High School.” Read the book to find out why!

In concluding his chapter on “Discipline,” Tim Russert states: “There’s a lot in a name. Canisius High School is still there, and it enjoys an excellent reputation.” These words are a wonderful endorsement of Canisius, and they come from a man with a lot in his name. Mr. Russert explains, “I have learned so much from Big Russ, and I feel so grateful to him, that I wanted to write a book about the two of us, and also about the other important teachers in my life.” I encourage you to read his story and reflect on what can only be called the timelessness of Canisius High School.

Big Russ & Me: Father and Son may be ordered by visiting our website, www.canisiushigh.org, and clicking on the link “To order Big Russ & Me,” which will take you to the website for the book. It is available in hardcover, audio cassette, and audio CD. Buffalo Bills fans, former and current Buffalonians, and all people who appreciate a highly accomplished, admirable and unpretentious man’s story will quickly read, reread, and highly recommend this book

The Big Russ & Me website says: “As Tim Russert celebrates the indelible connection between fathers and sons, readers everywhere will laugh, cry, and identify with the lessons of life taught by the indomitable Big Russ.” Tim also celebrates the indelible Canisius High School connection that we all have in common.

May God continue to bless that indelible Canisius High School connection.

Sincerely in the Lord,

James P. Higgins, S.J. ‘72

GW Bush, described as the 1st Roman Catholic President of the U.S., praised Russert:

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=114&sid=1421697

President Bush, informed of Russert's death while at dinner in Paris, swiftly issued a statement of condolence that praised the NBC newsman as "an institution in both news and politics for more than two decades. Tim was a tough and hardworking newsman. He was always well-informed and thorough in his interviews. And he was as gregarious off the set as he was prepared on it."

Here is something about Tim Russert at one particular eating event with GW Bush

Russert Drags Up, Sings Joke Song About Torture

Raw Story | March 14 2006

http://prisonplanet.com/articles/march2006/140306Russert.htm

The annual 121st dinner of the Gridiron Club, a group of senior hill reporters, featured celebrities, lawmakers, The Marine Corps band, send-ups of the Vice President by Barack Obama and President Bush, and some peculiar stage routines by well-known reporters, The Washington Post reports.

Helen Thomas, as a Scarlett O'Hara/Hillary Clinton cross, sang a song that compared the White House to a plantation, all decked out in green curtains (complete with Carol Burnett curtain rod). Barack Obama joked that he was nervous to stand so close to the Vice President, in the presence of alcohol. But the most memorable performers of the evening (for better or worse) were Tim Russert and President Bush.

Excerpts from the Post's recap follow:

Tim Russert, making his first appearance as a new member, decked out in a blue dress and a shiny blond wig as one of the cable news bunnies. But there were also some true clunkers. Singing about torture, subbing "rendition" for "tradition" and borrowing the "Fiddler on the Roof" song was not funny at all. The chumminess of the politicos and the press corps can be cloying.

#
And, on President Bush's routine:

#
"Dick, I've got an approval rating of 38 percent and you shoot the only trial lawyer in the country who likes me."

"You know there are all these conspiracy theories that Dick runs the country . . . or Karl [Rove] runs the country. Why aren't there any conspiracy theories that I run the country? Really ticks me off. The truth is that I do run the country . . . but Dick runs me and Lynne runs Dick. So actually Lynne runs the country. And Lynne, I think you're doin' a heckuva job. Although I have to say you dropped the ball big time on that Dubai deal."

And: "By the way, when Dick first heard my approval rating was 38 percent, he said, 'What's your secret?' "

And from NBC:

Statement from Jeff Zucker, president and CEO of NBC Universal:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25145431/

“We are heartbroken at the sudden passing of Tim Russert. We have lost a beloved member of our NBC Universal family and the news world has lost one of its finest. The enormity of this loss cannot be overstated. More than a journalist, Tim was a remarkable family man. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife, Maureen, their son, Luke, and Tim’s entire extended family.”

And from that same article:

Aside from his on-air responsibilities, Russert was a senior vice president and head of NBC’s overall Washington operations.

He was “one of the premier political journalists and analysts of his time,” Tom Brokaw, the former longtime anchor of “NBC Nightly News,” said in announcing Russert’s death. “This news division will not be the same without his strong, clear voice.”

Steve Capus, president of NBC News, called Russert’s death “a loss for the entire nation.”

Earlier this year, Time magazine named him one of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Thomas Richards/Spiritually Smart Page on Tim Russert