For what it's worth, I agree with the spectrum of commentary from Kos, John Cole, Goldberg, Yglesias, etc. trickling in about the expansion of Chuck Todd's role at NBC, whether it's the helm of Meet the Press or his own show. Todd's been a breath of fresh air throughout this whirlwind primary season and clearly proved his value to number-crunching and political analysis.
It's a sad circumstance to be talking about this, and I'd guess Todd himself is still buried in the numbness of the loss of his friend and mentor. But we appreciate his work and want to add our voices to the quiet speculation about how NBC will realign its political talent in the wake of such an earthquake. Todd's been a revelation this campaign season and should have a bigger platform.
Also for what it's worth, Luke Russert is as impressive a 22-year old as I've seen in a long time. He's handled this event publicly with grace, humor, poise, courage, and a hell of a big heart. He strikes me as an old soul. That kid's character, clearly nurtured by his family, proves the amplified tribute to his father is authentic.
Here's echoing Nate's post last week about Tim Russert. Godspeed.
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HAHA! Just wanted to brag a little about having known about Chuck Todd from Hotline on Call for quite some time before he broke into the big leagues.
BWAHAHA
I'm a huge fan of Chuck Todd (I also used to catch him on HotlineTV way back when), and would also like to see his role expanded. But I'm not sure if he has the necessary experience conducting interviews to take on Meet the Press. I think Todd can begin to fill the role of Russert's political analysis, but not his one-on-one interviews. It does seem like it will take several people to fill Russert's shoes.
I hope no one takes Nate's statistical work less seriously, or assume's bias, because of Sean's commentary.
He tarnished his halo with his cheap shot at moveon's commercial, but still the best thing on NBC.
To Anonymous ??:17
No one should. Sean (as PocketNines) has done great work with numbers and fancy charts himself, and this does not appear to be biased commentary in any way. We know their preferences in the fall, but it does not appear to carry over into their reporting, and that is one of the reasons this site is getting so much respect.
Open and honest accounting go a long way toward respect, and this site combines polls with a methodology that no other site matches.
I would love to see Obama's likely paths to the presidency to 538 if the tracking trend was adjusted downward.
Anyone else notice how Chuck Todd held back tears at various points over the weekend, that strikes me as someone who should be a person to fill the void left by Russert.
Although from the aspect that Russert was bureau chief and host, I do not know about his ability to host, but he is certainly prepared, and he can run the place and develop new talent.
About his shot at the moveon ad, I think that Russert would have made a similar comment, but he would have commanded the respect to finish his thought.
It was a good political ad, and Chuck Todd, like us all, understands that.
I think Chucks point stands, to a degree. Babies can be used against any war, no matter how just or unjust.
I think he's the clear replacement analyst for Nightly News, and we don't know anything about his possibility of being a bureau chief.
In regards to MTP, I think he's the wrong choice, because Chuck is an analyst, and not a newsmaker. MTP and all Sunday shows are about presenting viewpoints from various political groups and campaigns; Chuck doesn't seem to be strong in facilitating that.
I'd like to see a poll with Hillary as president, and Barack as VP and see how that poll compares to any other president and VP combo.
http://www.Hillary-Wins.com
http://www.CaucusCheating.com
http://www.FAIR-REFLECTION.com
http://www.WallStreetChange.com
AM-
You lost. Get over it.
AM I know and Gore was elected president in 2000. Time to move on, I think Hillary has.Sometimes life just isn`t fair!
Regarding Todd and the Moveon ad...
Todd was right for the most part. Moveon routinely puts out ads that actively hinder the causes they purport to support by basically sounding like asshats.
Time and time again they remind me of something I occasionally encounter on various forums: People who you want to disagree with you because their support weakens your position in the eyes of others and their opposition strengthens your position just because they are against you.
That said, Todd was great during the primary season with anything that was concrete, like numbers and rules. He was less good at analysis and predictions that weren't direct extrapolations of numbers and rules, like how he held out the possibility of a Clinton victory long after most people who understood the numbers said that was pretty much no happening.
Ever since Chuck Todd argued in a Nevada court that Kucinich shouldn't be included in the Nev. debates after inviting him to be in the debates, I'm done with him. I can't even stand to watch him on election nights and flip to CNN during the time he's on. NBC can give him whatever job they want, but I won't be tuning in.
Interviewing is a very specific skill. Not all smart, informed people are good at it. Chuck's a good analyst, but I don't think I've ever seen him interview someone. Maybe he'd be a natural, maybe not, but it's a real risk.
Maybe they should go back to the pre-Russert days of a panel of journalists grilling the guest. That's why it was called "Meet the Press" in the first place.
Several people mentioned this directly to Todd in his Newsvine chats BEFORE Tim Russert's death. They told him that they wanted to see him with his own show. Chuck Todd said that he did not want his own show, and considered himself to be incredibly fortunate to do exactly what he loves right now. He also said that he is an analyst, not an anchor. And I believe he was being genuine.
Todd's strength is that he's very good at numbers. And while I believe that people can be very good at numbers AND talking with a guest, I don't think it's Todd's specialty.
I think Ifill is the natural replacement to Russert on MTP — outstandingly nonpartisan, blunt interviewing skills, also a MTP personality — but I think they'll eventually go with Gregory, just because.
Let me cast a no vote on Gregory, since he's been mentioned. I know a lot of people respect him for being willing to ask tough questions at White House press briefings, but I just don't think he has the stuff. His show on MSNBC is incredibly shallow and the worst example of conventional wisdom-driven, vacuous, finger-in-the-wind silliness on political TV. His interpretation of poll numbers is so frequently dumb that it makes you want to scream. I don't think he's biased in any particularly way -- just that he invents a narrative each day and sticks to it even if evidence defies it. Needless to say, he lacks the depth to even begin to handle the spin of newsmakers one-on-one.
Wow, that probably sounded harsh. :)
How about John King coming over from CNN. His contract is up at the end of the year, which would be good timing.
The problem with Gregory is that he's clearly a lightweight. My vote's for an Ifill / Todd team-up.
I think Chuck Todd is overrated, simplistic even. He allows himself to be used as a toady sometimes for Keith Olbermann and the rest of the clowns on MSNBC. The guy I think who is head and shoulders above the crowd in understanding the trends and voting patterns and the man I turn to on election night to read the tea leaves is US News & WR reporter (and Fox News contributor) Michael Barone.
I like Brian's idea. I've thought the same thing. Why does NBC still call it "Meet the Press" when, in fact, they were meeting Tim Russert, DC Bureau Chief.
Go ba