Tony Snow, Dead at 53

We've lost another class political act and razor media wit. While I wasn't too familiar with his speechwriting for Bush 41, or of his radio show, I did enjoy Tony Snow's work as a Fox News commentator. He was also a truly great White House press secretary, handling the endless crush of indignant reporters with a deftness and grace as effective (in my opinion) as the rough-and-tumble brashness of Donald Rumsfeld, my other hero in the world of high-stakes PR. Over the brief seventeen months of his tenure at the podium, Tony Snow redefined the role, applying the signature style of a true bon vivant.

But there was a lot more to Tony Snow. He was a teacher, philosopher, and writer, a generalist, and obviously a devoted husband and father. A true renaissance man, at 53 he just too young to die. He was also a musician, which means he couldn't have been all bad, regardless of his politics. Which is not to say I am diametrically opposed to his point of view; rather, I found his nuance and, yes, spin to be quite refreshing.

There's a heartfelt blog about him at Stop the ACLU (a site I'd never heard of, and probably justifiedly so), which also has collected a large number of links to other non-mainstream toasts. It's a good connection to a level of content deeper than the pure mainstream reaction to his passing.

There's also an embarrassing piece at the Los Angeles Times website that shows the ugly side of partisan liberals. I say this not because of the Times' piece but because of the acrid comments posted in reply, the writers of which can't devote even a second of basic human decency in the dreadful wake of cancer; they're so wrapped up in hating Tony for how good he was at his job, and rushing to heap blame on him personally for the war in Iraq. Even though their now-precious Scott McClellan's recent tell-all reveals how little policy input the Press Secretary actually has.

Tony Snow was a quietly devout Catholic, and seemed like a truly decent guy besides, who socialized with his liberal friends and apparently had no problem leaving his politics at the office, in a throwback to a now-older, more civilized era in Washington where people on opposite sides of the aisle could battle during the day but then go out together for a few pints in the evening.

After all, it's not Tony's fault the atmosphere today is so chokingly partisan; his former bosses share some of that but even they are not completely responsible. It is the modern, optimized form of the American model of competing interests, so wisely framed for us centuries ago (given that duels and other physical confrontations were thankfully phased out in the 19th century).

In light of Tony's faith, I would refer you to his obituary article at Catholic Online. Deacon Keith Fournier quotes an excerpt from Snow's address to the 2007 graduating class at Catholic University:

"Now all of us love to delude ourselves, making excuses. But you know, the more we resist being honest and doing an honest evaluation, the sillier we behave. If you don’t believe it, think of any swinger you have ever seen in your life. Socrates was right: Know thyself.

But see, there’s more. Once you’ve gotten past the mirror phase, then things begin to get really interesting. You begin to confront the truly overwhelming question: Why am I here? And that begins to open up the whole universe, because it impels you to think like the child staring out at the starry night: “Who put the lights in the sky? Who put me here? Why?”

And pretty soon you are thinking about God. Don’t shrink from pondering God’s role in the universe or Christ’s. You see, it’s trendy to reject religious reflection as a grave offense against decency. That’s not only cowardly. That’s false. Faith and reason are knitted together in the human soul. So don’t leave home without either one.

... Think not only of what it means to love but what it means to be loved. I have a lot of experience with that. Since the news that I have cancer again, I have heard from thousands and thousands of people and I have been the subject of untold prayers. I’m telling you right now: You’re young [and you feel] bullet-proof and invincible.

[But] never underestimate the power of other people’s love and prayer. They have incredible power. It’s as if I’ve been carried on the shoulders of an entire army. And they had made me weightless. The soldiers in the army just wanted to do a nice thing for somebody. As I mentioned, a lot of people — everybody out here — wants to do that same thing.”

I think religious people everywhere could and should learn something from Tony Snow. He was a man of faith, but did not wear it on his sleeve; in fact I never realized he was particularly religious until he died. Clearly, I neither noticed him preaching, nor did I detect one iota of violence, intellectual or otherwise, nor any faith-based agenda in his work (defense of pro-life positions notwithstanding). And where I find the sort of outward religious statement quoted above, he's merely speaking to the Confirmed.

Thus, first out of simple respect and empathy, and second to try and do my small part to make up for the disappointing failure of fellow men, allow me to quote Luke 22:42 from Tony's choice of holy book, something with which I think he would concur:

"Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."