Tim Russert

As you all know, Tim Russert died yesterday. He was one of the leading political minds of our day. He gave us a true sense that he LOVED his job and actually had a way of explaining politics that made me listen and take interest.

People just published this article. And since Dad did not have an autopsy (at our request) it brings me some comfort to know that even if dad had had a treadmill test, he could have passed, and still had a heart attack. So we have been upset at dad for not doing what he was supposed to do and we could all still be in the same boat.

PLEASE READ:
Russert's stress test on April 29 was "normal," Newman said. "At a high level of exercise he had no symptoms," Newman said, adding that his blood pressure and cholesterol were "well-controlled." The newsman collapsed while preparing for his show Meet the Press Friday afternoon. Resuscitation attempts began immediately and after the Washington, D.C., paramedics arrived on the scene a full code was initiated, he said. He was taken to Sibley Memorial Hospital in Washington, D.C., where resuscitation efforts continued to no avail. Studies show that survival is only 4 to 5 percent with sudden cardiac arrest, even with immediate medical attention like Russert had, Newman noted.
His Final MorningDr. Cyril Wecht, a nationally renowned forensic pathologist, said Newman's description of why Russert died makes sense. "The left anterior descending artery is well known among pathologists as the widow-maker," he tells PEOPLE. "That tells you a lot, doesn't it? It's a classical situation that one encounters with great frequency in sudden unexpected death where you get a blood clot, or a thrombosis, or bleeding and if he had an enlarged heart, that adds to it." Clots can be caused by any number of things, he said. "Sometimes it's associated with stress and exertion, physical and/or emotional," he said. "Was he flying a long time? Was he tired? People shoveling snow in the wintertime can get them. People working excessively hard. Or people under great physical and/or emotional stress and that can include flying." Russert had flown in from Italy late Thursday night, where he'd been celebrating his son Luke's recent graduation from Boston College with his son and his wife, Vanity Fair writer Maureen Orth.


I think that this goes back to my thinking that when God decides he needs you home, you have to return to heaven.