Tony Snow 1955 – 2008

The news of Tony Snow's death this morning came like a kick to the stomach. He was one of the smartest, most decent men in Washington. Knowing he is gone hurts. Here is a brief obituary from Mouth of the Potomac:

Former White House press secretary Tony Snow died this morning after waging a courageous three-year battle with colon and liver cancer. He is survived by his wife Jill and three children. He was 53.

“All of us here at the White House will miss Tony, as will the millions of Americans he inspired with his brave struggle against cancer. One of the things that sustained Tony Snow was his faith — and Laura and I join people across our country in praying that this good man has now found comfort in the arms of his creator,” President Bush said in a statement.

Snow worked in both Bush administrations, first as speech writer to George H.W. Bush and later as spokesman for President George W. Bush. The first moderator of the “Fox News Sunday” program, he was also a radio personality, columnist, news anchor, basketball fan and musician. CNN recently announced Snow would join its network as a conservative commentator.

Snow was liked and admired by the White House press corps, and he enjoyed spending time with reporters on and off camera.

A saddened Fox News President Roger Ailes said on his network, “What radiated from Tony was a kindness and a gentleness, but with some intellectual power. We all loved him.”