How does one say farewell to a giant?

How does one say farewell to a giant?  That’s right, Tim was a giant.  He made rumpled excellence a classic.  He did things with passion, skill, character and a gift for simplicity that his peers in the business could not match.

Tim was brilliant in a street-smart way.  Watching him working an issue on "Meet the Press" was magic.  First came the opening question backed up with an on-screen quotation from something the respondent had said.  Never caught up in the pursuit, Tim always listened to the answer. The appropriate, spontaneous second question followed. The method made bobbing and weaving by the guest, obvious. Tim surgically exposed skullduggery without being mean-spirited and always kept his balance. After three hours of coverage of the most uninspiring primary, he remained sharp, insightful, never sardonic.

Tim had the passion. His enthusiasm for the news, his preparation, and the force of his gut instinct made those of us who worked with him on air better in our supporting roles. He also made the most complex and knotty issues understandable. He had the gift of pulling the essential reality from a jumble of emotion and half-baked facts.

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A kind and generous man, Tim demonstrated one of the hallmark traits of an inspirational leader. He made time for those of us learning the business. When you worked with him, he made you look good. A student of human nature, he knew how to inspire the troops with a personal touch or a moment of his time.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation spotlights stringent New York state laws that have long drawn criticism

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThe debate over AI’s future rages on both coasts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDecades-old march dispute reignites in Northern Ireland, threatening political crisis

How does one say farewell to a giant? One can’t because the memory will not pass. You honor a Tim Russert by trying as we go forward to make the same footprints he would make were he with us.

Gen. Montgomery C. Meigs appeared as a guest on Meet the Press three times.