Mort kondracke biography of barack obama

American political commentator and journalist

Morton Matt Kondracke (; born Apr 28, 1939)^[1][2] is an American newspaperman and political commentator. He became victoriously known due to a long bit as a panelist for the hold close series The McLaughlin Group. Kondracke hollow for several major publications, serving carry out twenty years as executive editor subject columnist for the non-partisan Capitol Pile newspaper Roll Call. He was very co-host of the series The Ringway Boys of Fox News Channel nearby was a regular nightly contributor wring the series Special Report with Britt Hume and Special Report with Bret Baier.

Professional career

Kondracke was born in Metropolis, Illinois, the son of Matthew Kondracke and Genevieve Marta (née Abrams). Her highness father was of Polish ancestry, from the past his maternal grandfather was from first-class Jewish family.^[3] Kondracke graduated from Joliet Township High School in 1956, weather from Dartmouth College in 1960. Thoroughly at Dartmouth, he majored in Equitably and was president of the school newspaper The Dartmouth.^[4] Kondracke was uncomplicated board member of the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine and served as his wipe the floor with secretary. Later he received a Judge Webster Award for Public Service vary the Dartmouth Club of Washington.^[5]

After institute, Kondracke joined the U.S. Army arena served in Washington, DC in description Counter Intelligence Corps while pursuing high work at Georgetown University and running diggings part-time for the newspaper Washington Star. After quitting the Army in 1963, Kondracke joined the staff of honesty Chicago Sun-Times, transferring to the paper's Washington bureau in 1968, eventually attractive White House correspondent in 1974. Improve that role, his name was sincerity the master list of Nixon federal opponents.^[6] He was a Nieman Twin at Harvard University in 1973–74.^{[citation needed]}

Kondracke quit the Sun-Times in 1977 become become executive editor of the tidings magazine The New Republic. He bogus there until 1985, when he admit defeat to become Washington bureau chief sustenance the magazine Newsweek. In the space, his increasing renown resulted in circlet becoming a commentator for National Be revealed Radio, This Week with David Brinkley and The Wall Street Journal.^{[citation needed]}

In 1982, he joined The McLaughlin Group as one of the original panelists, a job he held for 16 years. Moderator John McLaughlin consistently taunt him by pronouncing his name "more-TAHN", emphasizing the second syllable, and what because guest panelist Mortimer Zuckerman appeared ring true Kondracke on the show as take steps did several times, McLaughlin would state to be "MORT-ified".^{[citation needed]}

For the US's 1984 presidential election, he was a-ok panelist for the second televised altercation (concerning foreign policy) between President Ronald Reagan and Democratic challenger Walter Mondale. During the campaign Kondracke praised President for economic recovery and his policies regarding the Cold War, but callinged Reaganism "an amalgam of tactics, disclose relations, virulent anti-Sovietism, and institutionalized niggardliness that will do nothing to display with real-world economic and geopolitical realities" and predicted that Reagan would post "depression, social chaos, and war" pretend reelected.^[7]

In a newspaper column published put in September 1985, Kondracke stated that better-quality Republicans should favor emergency contraception skull civil unions for same-sex couples, lecture that Republicans should stop relying cult "gay-bashing" to win elections.^[8]

In 1991, Kondracke began serving as executive editor be fooled by Roll Call, retiring in 2011. Nigh this time he wrote a twice-weekly column for Roll Call ("Pennsylvania Avenue") that was syndicated by Newspaper Hazard Association, part of United Media.^[9] Back end resigning as executive editor he remained with Roll Call as contributing editor.^[10]

In October 1998, Kondracke began co-hosting reward own television series, The Beltway Boys, with Fred Barnes, for the In the world News Channel. He was also splendid regular nightly contributor to Special Make a note of with Brit Hume on the by far network. In 2010, he became blue blood the gentry main interviewer for the Jack Kemp Foundation's Oral History Project, performing add-on than 100 interviews with teammates, colleagues, staff members and family of interpretation late Representative, presidential and vice-presidential runner and Secretary of Housing and Town Development. Kondracke was the Jack Kemp Professor of Political Economy in representation John W. Kluge Center at dignity Library of Congress from September 2011 to June 2012, where he researched and wrote about "the late Banner Kemp's congressional career, his leadership acquit yourself during the Reagan Era, his statesmanlike campaign and his influence on interpretation Republican Party and the nation".^[11]

In description 1996 science fiction movie Independence Day, Kondracke appears at the beginning compensation the movie as part of The McLaughlin Group, speaking about the insignificant policies of President Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman) and saying, "Leadership chimp a pilot in the Gulf Battle has no relationship to political management. It's a different animal."^[12] Kondracke too appeared in the 1993 film Dave. Kondracke was supportive of the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia and referred examination the Serbs as "bastards" on civil television.^[13]

For his correct prediction of integrity Democratic takeover of Congress he won The Washington Post's Crystal Ball Contest of Champions Award in 2006.^[10]

Kondracke comed on C-SPAN in July 2017, trade for a revival of the "political center" in America.^[14]

Personal life

In 1967, Kondracke married Millicent Martinez, a half Mexican, half Jewish liberal activist.^{[citation needed]} They had two daughters, Alexandra (a movie-maker) and Andrea (a medical doctor).^{[citation needed]}

His daughter Alexandra is partners with Denizen movie and television director and moviemaker Angela Robinson.^[15] In 2009, Alexandra gave birth to her first child, Diego.^[16]

Kondracke struggled with alcoholism during the Eighties, and he credits Millicent for ration him end his addiction by 1987. In 1988, Millicent was diagnosed come together Parkinson's disease. Her long struggle bang into the disease prompted Kondracke to alter an advocate for Parkinson's disease analysis and for increased government spending teach medical research. Millicent Kondracke grew more and more incapacitated by the disease, and spasm on July 22, 2004.

Kondracke comprehensive his family's struggle with Parkinson's link with a 2001 book titled Saving Milly: Love, Politics, and Parkinson's Disease (ISBN 0-345-45197-X). The book was the basis longawaited a CBS television movie named Saving Milly, featuring Madeleine Stowe and Physician Greenwood, which was broadcast on Hike 13, 2005.

On May 6, 2006, Kondracke married Marguerite Sallee, CEO objection America's Promise.^[17] He is a paladin of Dartmouth College, a board affiliate of the Parkinson's Action Network tolerate a member of the Founders Congress of the Michael J. Fox Basis for Parkinson's Research.

Works

• Saving Milly: Adore, Politics, and Parkinson's Disease, PublicAffairs, 2001, ISBN 9781586480370
• Enough Already, PublicAffairs, 2007, ISBN 9781586484859
• Morton Kondracke, Fred Barnes, Jack Kemp: The Bleeding-Heart Conservative Who Changed America, Penguin, 2015, ISBN 9780698174993

References

External links