Mort Kondracke
Encyclopedia
Morton M. Kondracke is an American
political commentator and journalist
. He gained great visibility via a long stint as a panelist on The McLaughlin Group
. Kondracke worked for several leading publications, serving for twenty years as executive editor and columnist for the non-partisan Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call
. He was also co-host of The Beltway Boys
on Fox News Channel
and is a regular nightly contributor on Special Report with Bret Baier.
in 1960. While at Dartmouth, he majored in English and was president of The Dartmouth
newspaper. After college, Kondracke joined the U.S. Army
and served in Washington, DC in the Counter Intelligence Corps
while pursuing graduate work at Georgetown University
and working part time for the Washington Star
. After leaving the Army in 1963, Kondracke joined the staff of the Chicago Sun-Times
, moving to the paper's Washington bureau in 1968, eventually working his way up to White House correspondent in 1974. In that role, he landed on the master list of Nixon political opponents
.
Kondracke left the Sun-Times in 1977 to become executive editor of The New Republic
. He worked there until 1985 when he left to become Washington Bureau Chief for Newsweek
magazine. In the meantime, his increased profile led to commentary positions at National Public Radio, This Week with David Brinkley
and The Wall Street Journal
.
In 1982, he joined The McLaughlin Group
as one of the original panelists, a position he held for 16 years. Moderator John McLaughlin
consistently teased him by pronouncing his name "MORE-tahn", emphasizing the two syllables separately.
In 1984, he was a panelist for the second televised debate (on foreign policy) between President Ronald Reagan and Democratic challenger Walter Mondale.
In 1991, Kondracke began serving as executive editor of Roll Call
, retiring in 2011. In October 1998, he began co-hosting his own show, The Beltway Boys
, with Fred Barnes
on the Fox News Channel
. He was also a regular nightly contributor on Special Report with Brit Hume
on the same network. Kondracke also writes a twice-weekly column in "Roll Call" ["Pennsylvania Avenue"] that is syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, part of United Media
.
In the 1996 sci-fi film Independence Day
, Mort Kondracke appears in the beginning of the movie on a morning talk show speaking about the ineffectual leadership of President Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman
) saying, "Leadership as a pilot in the Gulf War has no relationship to political leadership. It's a different animal."
during the 1980s, and he credits Millicent for helping him end his addiction by 1987. In 1988, Millicent was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease
. Her long battle with the disease led Kondracke to become an advocate for Parkinson's research and for increased government spending on medical research. Millicent Kondracke grew increasingly incapacitated by the disease and died on July 22, 2004.
Kondracke detailed his family's struggle with Parkinson's in a 2001 book called Saving Milly: Love, Politics, and Parkinson's Disease (ISBN 0-345-45197-X). The book was the basis of a CBS
television movie called Saving Milly
, starring Madeleine Stowe
and Bruce Greenwood
, which aired March 13, 2005.
On May 29, 2006, Kondracke married Marguerite Sallee, CEO of America's Promise
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
political commentator and journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
. He gained great visibility via a long stint as a panelist on The McLaughlin Group
The McLaughlin Group
The McLaughlin Group is a syndicated half-hour weekly public affairs television program in the United States, where a group of five pundits discuss current political issues in a round table format. It has been broadcast since 1982, and is currently sponsored by MetLife...
. Kondracke worked for several leading publications, serving for twenty years as executive editor and columnist for the non-partisan Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call
Roll Call
Roll Call is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C., United States, from Monday to Thursday when the United States Congress is in session and on Mondays only during recess. Roll Call reports news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of...
. He was also co-host of The Beltway Boys
The Beltway Boys
The Beltway Boys was an internationally syndicated American weekly television show. The title referred to the Capital Beltway — the circumferential freeway surrounding Washington, D.C. — and to the two journalists who hosted the show: Mort Kondracke and Fred Barnes...
on Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
and is a regular nightly contributor on Special Report with Bret Baier.
Professional career
Born in Chicago, Illinois, Kondracke graduated from Joliet Township High School in 1956, and from Dartmouth CollegeDartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1960. While at Dartmouth, he majored in English and was president of The Dartmouth
The Dartmouth
The Dartmouth is the daily student newspaper at Dartmouth College. Founded in 1799, it is America's oldest college newspaper. It is published by The Dartmouth, Inc., an independent, nonprofit corporation chartered in the state of New Hampshire.-History:...
newspaper. After college, Kondracke joined the U.S. Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and served in Washington, DC in the Counter Intelligence Corps
Counter Intelligence Corps
The Counter Intelligence Corps was a World War II and early Cold War intelligence agency within the United States Army. Its role was taken over by the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps in 1961 and, in 1967, by the U.S. Army Intelligence Agency...
while pursuing graduate work at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
and working part time for the Washington Star
Washington Star
The Washington Star, previously known as the Washington Star-News and the Washington Evening Star, was a daily afternoon newspaper published in Washington, D.C. between 1852 and 1981. For most of that time, it was the city's newspaper of record, and the longtime home to columnist Mary McGrory and...
. After leaving the Army in 1963, Kondracke joined the staff of the Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times
The Chicago Sun-Times is an American daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship paper of the Sun-Times Media Group.-History:The Chicago Sun-Times is the oldest continuously published daily newspaper in the city...
, moving to the paper's Washington bureau in 1968, eventually working his way up to White House correspondent in 1974. In that role, he landed on the master list of Nixon political opponents
Master list of Nixon political opponents
A master list of Nixon political opponents was compiled to supplement the original Nixon's Enemies List of 20 key people considered opponents of President Richard Nixon. The master list was compiled by Charles Colson's office and sent in memorandum form to John Dean. Dean later provided this...
.
Kondracke left the Sun-Times in 1977 to become executive editor of The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
. He worked there until 1985 when he left to become Washington Bureau Chief for Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
magazine. In the meantime, his increased profile led to commentary positions at National Public Radio, This Week with David Brinkley
This Week (ABC TV series)
This Week is ABC's Sunday morning political affairs program.The Sunday morning talk show has aired on Sunday mornings on ABC since 1981; the program is initially aired at 9:00 AM ET, although many stations air the program later, especially those in other time zones...
and The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
.
In 1982, he joined The McLaughlin Group
The McLaughlin Group
The McLaughlin Group is a syndicated half-hour weekly public affairs television program in the United States, where a group of five pundits discuss current political issues in a round table format. It has been broadcast since 1982, and is currently sponsored by MetLife...
as one of the original panelists, a position he held for 16 years. Moderator John McLaughlin
John McLaughlin (host)
John McLaughlin is an American television personality and political commentator. He created, produces and hosts the long-running political commentary series The McLaughlin Group as well as John McLaughlin's One On One....
consistently teased him by pronouncing his name "MORE-tahn", emphasizing the two syllables separately.
In 1984, he was a panelist for the second televised debate (on foreign policy) between President Ronald Reagan and Democratic challenger Walter Mondale.
In 1991, Kondracke began serving as executive editor of Roll Call
Roll Call
Roll Call is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C., United States, from Monday to Thursday when the United States Congress is in session and on Mondays only during recess. Roll Call reports news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of...
, retiring in 2011. In October 1998, he began co-hosting his own show, The Beltway Boys
The Beltway Boys
The Beltway Boys was an internationally syndicated American weekly television show. The title referred to the Capital Beltway — the circumferential freeway surrounding Washington, D.C. — and to the two journalists who hosted the show: Mort Kondracke and Fred Barnes...
, with Fred Barnes
Fred Barnes (journalist)
Frederic W. Barnes is an American political commentator. He is the executive editor of the news publication The Weekly Standard and regularly appears on the Fox News Channel program Special Report with Bret Baier...
on the Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel
Fox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
. He was also a regular nightly contributor on Special Report with Brit Hume
Special Report with Brit Hume
Special Report with Bret Baier is an American television news and political commentary program appearing on Fox News Channel, currently hosted by Bret Baier. It airs live each Monday through Friday at 6:00pm ET. The show focuses on both reporting and analysis of the day's events, with a primary...
on the same network. Kondracke also writes a twice-weekly column in "Roll Call" ["Pennsylvania Avenue"] that is syndicated by Newspaper Enterprise Association, part of United Media
United Media
United Media is a large editorial column and comic strip newspaper syndication service based in the United States, owned by The E.W. Scripps Company. It syndicates 150 comics and editorial columns worldwide. Its core business is the United Feature Syndicate and the Newspaper Enterprise Association...
.
In the 1996 sci-fi film Independence Day
Independence Day (film)
Independence Day is a 1996 science fiction film about an alien invasion of Earth, focusing on a disparate group of individuals and families as they converge in the Nevada desert and, along with the rest of the human population, participate in a last-chance counterattack on July 4 – the same...
, Mort Kondracke appears in the beginning of the movie on a morning talk show speaking about the ineffectual leadership of President Thomas J. Whitmore (Bill Pullman
Bill Pullman
William James "Bill" Pullman is an American film, television, and stage actor. Pullman made his film debut in the supporting role of Earl Mott in the 1986 film Ruthless People. He has since gone on to star in other films, including Spaceballs, Independence Day, Lost Highway, Casper and Scary Movie 4...
) saying, "Leadership as a pilot in the Gulf War has no relationship to political leadership. It's a different animal."
Personal life
In 1967, Kondracke married Millicent Martinez, a half Jewish, half Mexican liberal activist. They had two children, filmmaker Alexandra and Andrea, now a medical doctor. Kondracke battled alcoholismAlcoholism
Alcoholism is a broad term for problems with alcohol, and is generally used to mean compulsive and uncontrolled consumption of alcoholic beverages, usually to the detriment of the drinker's health, personal relationships, and social standing...
during the 1980s, and he credits Millicent for helping him end his addiction by 1987. In 1988, Millicent was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
. Her long battle with the disease led Kondracke to become an advocate for Parkinson's research and for increased government spending on medical research. Millicent Kondracke grew increasingly incapacitated by the disease and died on July 22, 2004.
Kondracke detailed his family's struggle with Parkinson's in a 2001 book called Saving Milly: Love, Politics, and Parkinson's Disease (ISBN 0-345-45197-X). The book was the basis of a CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television movie called Saving Milly
Saving Milly
Saving Milly is a 2005 American drama television film stars Madeleine Stowe and Bruce Greenwood, which first aired on CBS on March 13, 2005. It is an adaptation of Morton Kondracke's nonfiction book of the same name.-Plot:...
, starring Madeleine Stowe
Madeleine Stowe
Madeleine Mora Stowe is an American actress. She rose to prominence appearing in films such as Stakeout, Revenge, Unlawful Entry, The Last of the Mohicans, Blink, China Moon, 12 Monkeys, and We Were Soldiers...
and Bruce Greenwood
Bruce Greenwood
Bruce Greenwood is a Canadian actor and musician. He is generally known for his roles as U.S. presidents in Thirteen Days and National Treasure: Book of Secrets and for his role as Captain Christopher Pike in the 2009 Star Trek film...
, which aired March 13, 2005.
On May 29, 2006, Kondracke married Marguerite Sallee, CEO of America's Promise
America's Promise
America's Promise — The Alliance for Youth is a foundation founded by Colin Powell in 1997 to help children and youth from all socioeconomic sectors in the United States.In late April 1997 Presidents Bill Clinton, George H. W...
.
External links
- Roll Call newspaper
- FOX News biography
- Dartmouth College biography (defective link)
- "Kondracke Confronts the Pain and Politics of Parkinson's Disease", Tech Central Station, June 7, 2001
- "Reflections on Nelson Rockefeller's legacy" Dartmouth Life Newspaper, May, 2008