Tony Snow's Passing Sparks Avalanche Of Tributes, Memories

'A MAN OF CHARACTER'

Snow Had Significant Impact In Media, Politics






*** MORE TRIBUTES ***
*** Rush Attacks 'Classless' AP Reporting ***


With a combination of wit, charm and soft- spoken modesty, Tony Snow long ago won over Washington's media and politics establishment. That's why his passing from colon cancer at the age of 53 earlier today has so many mourning his loss.

Fellow talk hosts and bloggers have provided immediate reactions. This morning, syndicated radio talk host Mark Levin told your Radio Equalizer, "anybody who met Tony loved the guy. He was thoroughly decent, kind, honorable and full of life.

"Whenever I would run into him, he was always smiling and upbeat. He so loved his family and country. This is a great loss of an outstanding human being. I wish his family peace and my heart goes out to them."

Between hosting talk radio programs (most notably as Rush Limbaugh's fill-in host), cable news shows, writing columns and his stint as White House Press Secretary, it's difficult to quantify his clearly substantial overall impact on the political scene.

In addition, FOX News Channel Chairman Roger Ailes has told FOX & Friends this:

We had word it wasn't going well. I saw Tony — he came by to see me six months ago. We sat and talked for an hour or an hour and a half. I said, 'how are you doing?' He said 'well, they tell me this thing is back a little bit.' I said, 'what are your plans?' He said 'I need to get money together to make sure the family is okay in case this doesn't turn around.' He was always thinking of them and always figuring out how to prepare just in case. I sent a note to Jill and told her that we heard he was having a rough time, she said he was pretty sick but she would be sure to read it to him. Then she e-mailed me back to say that he thanked everybody at Fox News.

Thanks to his relaxed style, Snow had a way of expressing blunt views without coming across as a loose cannon. He famously criticized President Bush, only to in turn be hired to work in his administration. From CNN:

Snow was known for his candor.

In a November 11, 2005, column, Snow wrote that Bush's "wavering conservatism has become an active concern among Republicans, who wish he would stop cowering under the bed and start fighting back against the likes of Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi and Joe Wilson."

"The newly passive George Bush has become something of an embarrassment," Snow's column said.

"I asked him about those comments," joked the president at the time of Snow's appointment. "And he said, 'You should have heard what I said about the other guy.'"

More recently, Snow had joined CNN, but illness prevented him from spending much time there.

In April, he appeared at the Media Research Center's annual Dishonors Awards, where your Radio Equalizer had a chance to meet and talk with him for the first time. Actually, he seemed surprisingly healthy that day, with a strong handshake and upbeat personality.

But just days later, it emerged that his health had taken a turn for the worse, leading to today's passing.


If there's one way we'll best remember Tony Snow, it will be from his tenure in the White House. In confronting the Drive-By Media, he was fearless, which drove the left batty. He never caved under pressure, a rarity in the Beltway's conformist political culture, where everyone seems out to please the liberal establishment.


FOR New England regional talk radio updates, see our other site.


Amazon orders originating with clicks here benefit The Radio Equalizer's ongoing operations.

Your Honor System contributions keep this site humming along. Thanks!


Technorati tags: talk radio tony snow tony snow fox tony snow dies tony snow passes tony snow rush limbaugh tony snow mark levin media research center dishonors awards