The passing of Tim Russert was very much a shock. It caused me to reflect on my own mortality for a good part of this Father’s Day. For years I watched Meet The Press and it’s one of my regular podcasts – loved it. I was drawn to Russert’s youthful enthusiasm, work ethic and ability to provide clarity to Byzantine world of politics. My father met him when we appraised his property a number of years ago and he was as genuine in person as he came across on television.

The use of a dry erase board in the 2000 presidential election was classic.

>Amid the high-tech wizardry of television, it was Russert who picked up a white board and marker on Election Night 2000 and plotted the progress of the Bush/Gore all-nighter, scribbling “Florida, Florida, Florida” before anyone knew the race would not be settled there for 36 days.

And other moments.

Of course, Florida foreclosures aren’t going to settle down for quite a while because of the backlog in the foreclosure pipeline, unlike other markets.


4 Comments

  1. Cyndee Haydon June 16, 2008 at 12:11 am

    We had the same discussion at our home. He was a great guy that is gone way too soon and it was the prefect reminder that none of us knows what tomorrow holds. We put real estate aside today and just enjoyed Father’s Day as a family – since you nailed it – Florida’s market isn’t going to be any less stressful or crazy anytime soon.

  2. Kevin Tomlinson June 16, 2008 at 9:10 am

    Hey Jonathan
    Welcome back from vaca.

  3. Mark McGlothlin June 16, 2008 at 10:21 am

    Jonathon, nice post about Russert. He was a rarity among the talking heads today – reading a bit about him this weekend and his zeal for life was impressive. We had the same reaction at my house as we pondered how short life can be for some (Russert was a young 58) – work hard and enjoy your days!

  4. sam t. June 16, 2008 at 1:00 pm

    I still can’t believe he’s gone. This one really does make me reflect on how short life can be, and how quickly it can be gone.

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