that they are ready to give their life on the cause of their leader. >> this week, american and the courts, supreme court justice anthony kennedy speaks in palo alto california. america and the courts, tomorrow is 7:00 p.m. eastern on c-span. >> july 4 weekend of book tv, to discover an unfamiliar side of our nation's first president as we are live from the mount vernon estate with john ferling on the ascent of george washington. join us, sunday, july fit at

noon on c-span's directv. the entertainment includes arthur and actor john hodgman who is perhaps known as his work as a correspondent on, a central. -- on comedy central. >> please direct your attention to the screen. >>

he's barack obama. he has come to save the day. ♪ ♪ >> there, we got a situation. >> pirates. >>♪

>[laughter] [applause] thank you for evan and great. they are here with us along with members of the team. a stand-up. thank you, there are dvd's on

your table. please enjoy your first course 3 will be back in just a minute. -- we will be back in just a minute. >> one of the longstanding traditions of our association is to toast our special guest. so, please stand and join me in the executive committee in that tradition. >> to the president. we're very honored to have you with us tonight. thank you.

please be seated. >> he had the most appropriate name for a journalist >> we call that the chicken noodle network in those days. of all people thought that when bill left one of the networks to

go to work for this newfangled deal that nobody thought was going to go very far, we all wondered if he had something along with him. he saw something that the rest of us did not see. he did a great job. >> tony left nearly a year ago, but the sorrow is still fresh. remember his spirit and cheerful presence. washington will never be the same and without tony snow. god bless the snow family and

may god bless you all. calling out the name i cherish god bless this no family, and may god bless you all. >> from nbc news, this is "meet the press" with tim russert. >> today, a subject that concerns each and everyone of us. your pocketbook. >> i never knew anyone who enjoyed news, who was more curious or had more enthusiasm about news than candid. that was his great secret. great reporters had this curiosity about them. the greatest curiosity i have ever known. the guy that came closest to>> every sunday, we invite the american people to share their views with the american public. mr. secretary, you say that people were sent to the convention center. there was no water, no food, no beds, no authorities there.

there was no planning. it is fair to say you're thinking about running for president in 2008? >> is fair, yes. >> i felt like i was hitting a home run off the best pitcher in the league. home run off the best pitcher in the league. >> i have not had so much since my last interrogation. [laughter] [applause] >> tonight, we dedicate this dinner to the headline, tony snow, and tim russert. these were fine journalists. >> ladies and gentleman, the court later chad program of fox

news. >> this is one of the first time to present what to watch somebody from fox for a few minutes. [applause] this is a special part of our program or recognize our colleagues with a the david bloom awards. these honors recognize some of the best reporting in the business. the first award as a nun -- is a not to outstanding achievement in covering public policy and politics on capitol hill. previous winners come from national public radio, nbc and cbs, and cnn. this year's judges were betsy fisher of nbc news, and my colleague the fox news. here to present the award is bill plante from cbs. [applause]

here becomes. [applause] >> the award we present to your honour's a woman who was an abstraction to most of you, but still is as real as any of you today to the few of us remaining who knew her. she started out as a researcher at cbs news. that is what some of you are today. she rose to be executive producer of the broadcast face of the nation. here is why this award means something. getting it shows that the winner has the kind of enterprise and style and smarts that made john a terrific journalist. she was smart. there was never fact she could

not recall off the top of her head. she was demanding. she had the kind of standards that the critics say do not exist anymore in the kind of work we do the winners of this honor are proof that those standards to exist. john wasn't just a tough and smart either. she was funny. someone who loved life as much as she loved politics, politicians, and the things that go on day to day in this town. in short, she was the kind of person that any of you would be delighted to have at your table tonight. and even more important would be delighted have as a colleague next monday. in that spirit, it is my honor to announce this year's winner of the joan award. mike vacara of nbc news.

[applause] in september and october of 2008, mike trace the turmoil leading to one of the most significant votes in the house of representatives and more than 40 years. the financial bailout. in live shot after a live shot, he joined the crack reporting with great sourcing, tracing the dawn to dusk negotiations.

he even helped the technical crews drag cable across the tappan -- across the capitol rotunda to get his story on the air. here is a look at his work. >> you can see mike in the foreground. >> we have 30 seconds. we're just getting be assembled -- and getting the assembled people. hank paulson, congressional leaders, republicans, democrats, virtually all afternoon since about 7:00 in the morning. >> joining us from capitol hill , explain where things are at now and where we should be looking the rest of the afternoon. >> we have a lot of moving parts. there is a dramatic scene that played out over the course of the entire evening. it began the afternoon when hank paulson came to the hill and diversion of shuttle diplomacy in suit.

sometime in 1:00 hour this afternoon, from all indications, it is going to be a very close vote. 161-161 now andrea. has the questions about the american economy, the credit market, -- conservatives do not like this bill. they said it favored wall street over main street. the $700 billion price tag is much too much for them to swallow. all systems are go for this vote today. hoping it will not be a replay of that debacle we saw on monday. >> mike, congratulations. >> thank you, bill. mr. president, distinguished guests, this is kind of a

surprise. i wrote down a few notes on the odd chance that i would win this award. i would like to thank mark whitaker for allowing me to follow in the merits of my own reporting and my own abilities as a newsman. tony, my desk assignment editor who is the person who pushed me and organized this and there is someone i would like to dedicate this award to. i would like to dedicate this to a dedicated newswoman of the old school. when i came to abc, she was very kind to me and sent me out on the most difficult assignments and she had a firm hand but a very warm heart. i'd dedicate this to mary dorman. once again, thank you very much.

i want to say hello and arizona to my wife and children who are visiting their in-laws. i love you guys very much. [applause] >> congratulations, mike. special thanks to build plants from cbs. -- bill plantte from cbs. our next award as the david bloom award. the bloom award is given for courageous reporting tha is dangerous, daring, and composed in the most difficult of circumstances. previous winners include abc's bob woodruff, and my colleague at fox, steve sent on all.

-- sentano. here to present this award are david bloom's daughters, ava, christine, and nicole. [applause] >> we want to start by saying that our family is so grateful to tim russert. he was instrumental in establishing the david bloom award. we want you to know that we miss your dad dearly. [applause] six years ago, our father, david bloom, passed away while covering the war in iraq. despite how difficult it was to lose him, we can't help but be so proud of his courage and reporting.

tonight, however, we're not just remembering our dad. we are honoring all of the u.s. troops and brave journalists who continually put themselves in harm's way to do dangerous work. the winner of the david j. blum award shows bravery on the job. tonight, we're pleased to present this year's award to oral lebaron of the bbc. >> in the fall of 2008, garon produced a report on a day of desperation for thousands of refugees near goma. the presidential election was just days away, but the bbc decided that the panic at a un

food distribution center out with a campaign. he reported as starving men, women, and children crushed against the fences of the center. she even talked a little girl that was caught beneath a stampede and was separated from her parents. for this, we honor and the bbc for their courage to leave it with such an important on the reported sale. her bravery really captures the spirit of our father, david bloom. >> you would expect us to begin tonight's program on the campaign trail. that can wait for a few minutes, because tonight, and the democratic republic of congo, there are scenes of desperation so gripping that they simply demand our attention first. hour after cut call-up -- africa correspondent was in the city of goma. you might find some scenes in

her report disturbing. >> it was the promise of food that brought them here, to the refugee camp. after waiting for help for days, they did not want to wait anymore. >> to the scene here now is absolutely chaotic. children are being trampled in the rush as people pushed their way through the gates. they're absolutely desperate to get their hands on any food that they can. it really is a terrible scene. we saw youngsters in distress and dragged them to safety. another terrifying moment for children already traumatized by conflict. like this little girl who had been knocked over and separated from her parents in the mayhem. later, happy reunion with her relieved father found her.

>> thank you. >> your welcome. they were told they were able to control the situation. the desperation was so much that they couldn't. they had no option but to try. people were appealing for any help they could get. [applause] that to accept the bloom award on behalf of hurt is mr. harmon, executive producer of bbc world news america. [applause] >> congratulations to our winner. [applause]

>> nicole, christine, and the, -- eva, i'll never forget when i woke up in the spring of 2003 and turned on the today show and saw your father broadcasting live from an american tank rolling up to the sands and iraq. i remember thinking, as a lot of people in this room did, this guy has changed the game. this instance. forever. i know you are very proud of him. i know that ora admired the kind of journalism your father practiced. i think he would of admire the kind of journalism that she does. she is brave, she is tough, she is smart, she is real, and she

has the instincts to be right middle of the story. not to grandstand, but to know, as you all saw on that report, that that is the way to tell human, compelling stories that really make an impact. we're really proud to have a chance to showcase her work and that of other bbc journalists around the world on bbc world news america. if you have not seen the program, check this out. it is like nothing else on american television. it is a window to the world. [applause] after a very distinguished stance as hourly correspondent in africa, she has just begun a new assignment in pakistan based in islamabad. that is why she cannot be here tonight. she is doing stories that are going to err on bbc and on our program. she would want me to think your

family very much, and to pass along respect and gratitude to you. i know that she wants me to think the radio television correspondents association, and all of you. it is a great honor. it thank you very much. >> thank you. congratulations, once again. also, a shout out for mike at nbc. at a special thanks to our judges for their dedication and integrity. the high standards of joan and david permeate all the candidates and entries we consider for the honors this year. we're in good hands in the journalism world.

>> thanks, chad. it is my pleasure and honor to introduce the president of the united states, barack obama. [applause] >> thank you. thank you so much. thank you very much. thank you. thank you so much. thanks to all of you, thank you. please, everybody have a seat. before i get started, as the father of two girls, can i just say how incredibly impressive those three young ladies were. [applause] that would be proud. -- dad would be proud.

to heather and all the others that made this evening possible, thinking some much. it is wonderful to be here. i want to express my appreciation for the opportunity to tell jokes that were not funny enough when we did this five weeks ago. [applause] -- [laughter] what ever. the jokes may not be as good, but neither is the guest list. [laughter] [applause] i am just joking. for me, there is no contest. why bother hanging out when celebrities -- with celebrities when i can spend time with people that made me one. i know where my bread is buttered. plus, we have our own luminary's here. john is here from wyoming.

i'm sorry, john skip this evening. for those of you who have not met him, he is the george clooney of junior senator from wyoming. [laughter] it is great to be here. there is some much talent from the four world of tv and radio. despite the flood of new media, your program is more relevant than ever before. that is the impression i get when i read the logs every day. -- blogs every day. [laughter] journalists like chuck taught. i spotted him over there somewhere. at this dinner, chuck embodies the best of both worlds. he has the rapid-fire style of a

television correspondent and the facial hair of a radio correspondent. [laughter] mika rezenski is here. we both have partners named joe who used to be in congress and did not know when to stop talking. [laughter] and happening now, wolf pulitzer is here. -- blitzer is here. the only man in america with his own situation room. people assume that-cooler, but this is not the case. as far as we have tried, we have not been able to generate the band with necessary to turn larry summers into a hologram. [laughter] we can't do it.

one person they know could not be here tonight is secretary hillary clinton. as most of you know, hillary broker elbow a few days ago on her way to the white house. we all wish for a speedy recovery. i do have to say, while it has been reported as an accident, there were some suspicious circumstances. just before the incident, secret service spotted richard holbrooke sprang to be 40 all over the driveway. -- spraying wd-40. on top of the cost of health care and energy, we have another fiscal problem. fortunately, the lawyers telerate -- tell me that hillary is ready to settle. [laughter] i have to admit, it was not easy coming up with fresh material for this dinner. a few nights ago, i was up tossing and turning trying to figure out