Remembering Tony Snow, a First-Rate Human Being
Tony Snow's death this past weekend did not, given what we knew of the spread of his cancer, come as a shock out of the blue. But it came as a shock nevertheless. Tony was one of the people in the politics/journalism business for whom the first word that comes to mind has long been "good." Good not just in the sense of competence and knowledge but good in the sense of moral human being. I first knew Tony back in 1991, when he and I were both panelists from time to time on the Channel 5 talk program Off the Record, hosted by Bob Beckel. Tony was then an editorial writer for the Detroit News and the Washington Times, and he brought his unfailing good humor and cheerful demeanor to a show that featured a certain amount of partisan rough and tumble.
Tony left newspapers and Beckel's program to become White House chief speechwriter in 1991. He was the host of Fox News Sunday from 1996 to 2003, wrote a syndicated column (and a darned good one), and hosted his own radio talk show after subbing for Rush Limbaugh. From 2006 to 2007, he was White House press secretary and did a superb job. Future historians will do right to wonder whether the repute of George W. Bush and his administration would not have been a lot higher if Tony had been offered and taken the job back in 2003, when Ari Fleischer left. I don't think it's hyperbole to say that Tony may have been the best White House press secretary ever; he was certainly one of the best. He served his president faithfully and at the same time was careful to be accurate and fair in his dealings with the press, apologizing from time to time when he was convinced it was warranted. He used both his wide knowledge of the issues and what was happening at the highest levels of the White House, plus his trademark good humor, to present a positive and convincing view of the president's performance. He didn't hesitate to challenge, good-humoredly, the premises of reporters' questions. I assumed that Tony resigned from this job he obviously loved because of the disease threatening him and the need, genuine in his case, to spend more time with his family and provide for them while he could. We have lost an absolutely first-rate human being, and I have lost a friend who was always brimming with curiosity, learning, and good cheer.
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A loss that cannot be measured...
In the days after Tony's passing, anchors on Fox News would ask the same question of several people (Rush, Vice President Cheney, WH correspondents, etc.) what Tony meant to the conservative movement. For these individuals, it seemed a difficult question to answer. But I felt they were asking the wrong people, because I don't think those in the Beltway, or in the forefront of conservative commentary, could really appreciate what Tony meant to average conservatives around the country. Tony was a star, and a much bigger star than most realize.
While his kindness and decency is so often referenced, I believe his profound intellect has been somewhat overlooked. He had an insight into events that was truly unique, and he was a devastating advocate for conservatism. He could distill the issues in a way I had never heard before, making conservatism simple and accessible, without dumbing it down.
I think it was Brit Hume who said there just didn't seem to be enough Tony to go around. Truer words were never spoken. I don't think I'm alone in thinking that all Tony needed was a big enough bullhorn, and he could convince each and every American that our future needed the individual liberty on which this great country is founded, and the political landscape would be forever changed. I cannot imagine the loss felt by his family friends. I hope they know how much we are thinking of them, as we, too, feel such incredible loss... for a man we never met, always hoped we could know, and whose voice we longed to hear.
I sincerely pray that all of us will take what we have learned from Tony, and raise our own voices with the kind of honesty, joy, and kindness that would make him proud.
Class
Tony was class. He was respected by folks from both sides of the political spectrum. We will miss his grace and optimism, especially in journalism. May God bless his family. Thanks to them for sharing Tony with us.
A truly good man.
So much has been said and written about Tony Snow--albeit less than was written about Tim Russert, another good and capable journalist.
I offer, however, my own personal recollection. While a junior in high school, ca. 1994, I attended the Washington Journalism Conference. The Conference was a chance for high school kids considering a career in mass communications to experience the center of the media universe up-close.
The first night, the keynote speaker was a young columnist and former White House speechwriter by the name of Tony Snow. I was ecstatic. One of the few conservatives present, I had just been listening to Tony subbing for Rush Limbaugh that week.
After his speech, I confidently asked him a question. I was troubled by the media double-standard in how they'd treated Reagan-era scandals versus those of the (pre-Monica) Clinton administration. Whitewater was on my mind. The media's lack of coverage was as well.
Tony told me that I was looking at things the wrong way. He told me that the job of reporters wasn't "to tear the other guy's face off." He told me that the search for truth was what mattered, and a willingness to report facts without prejudice, without malice. Essentially, he told me journalists needed to proceed as gentlemen.
Later that night, he good-naturedly agreed to pose for a photo with me--a kid who no doubt was starting to overstay my welcome. I have that photo to this day.
Now, it's an even more precious memento of a man whose character will always mark him as a giant, and a reminder of what it is to do a job well.
Tony Snow is one of my great heroes. He will be missed. I just consider myself lucky to have actually been personally touched, and made better, by him.
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