Barack Obama On Death of Tim Russert

Here is Barack Obama's statement on the news that NBC News Washington Bureau Chief Tim Russert had died suddenly of a heart attack today.

I’ve known Tim Russert since I first spoke at the convention in 2004. He’s somebody who, over time, I came to consider not only a journalist but a friend. There wasn’t a better interviewer in TV, not a more thoughtful analyst of our politics, and he was also one of the finest men I knew. Somebody who cared about America, cared about the issues, cared about family. I am grief-stricken with the loss and my thoughts and prayers go out to his family. And I hope that, even though Tim is irreplaceable, that the standard that he set in his professional life and his family life are standards that we all carry with us in our own lives.

For those who follow Washington politics, Tim Russert was one of the last true journalists. He got to the heart of the matter with as little bias as humanly possible.