FLASH: Former Senator Ted Stevens Killed in Alaska Plane Crash - Local TV, Quoting Family Friend

[Hissyspit]

Source: Reuters

ViaTwitter: Reuters: FLASH: Former Senator Ted Stevens killed in Alaska plane crash -local TV, quoting family friend

Former Senator Stevens killed in crash: report
Tue Aug 10, 2010 12:47pm EDT

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Former Republican Senator Ted Stevens was among those killed when a small plane crashed in Alaska on Monday night, local television station KTUU said on its website on Tuesday, quoting a longtime family friend.

KTUU quoted Dave Dittman, a former aide to the senator, as saying he was among the dead. There were conflicting reports about how many people were aboard the plane. Federal safety officials said early information indicated nine people were aboard and up to five were killed, while another source close to the matter said only eight were aboard and five were dead.

Read more: http://us.mobile.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE6792MJ20100810?ca=rdt

[saigon68]

1. Adios

I have toned down the epithets

[Arctic Dave]

2. Confirmed by Dave Dittman.

He is long time friend of the Stevens and is a Republican insider so I would take this as being confirmed.

[chrisa]

3. Rest in peace.

:(

[dave29]

4. RIP

.

[DrDan]

5. Rest in Peace . . .

[meegbear]

6. RIP

[cowman]

7. RIP

and condolences to the families of the other fatalities.

[Jennicut]

8. I feel for his kids. Their mother died in plane crash in '78, which Ted Stevens survived.

Losing both your parents to plane crashes...

[WinkyDink]

36. Not to mention TS's BEING in two plane crashes. Yikes.

[proteus_lives]

116. Yikes, indeed.

It's like a episode of the Twilight Zone. He never escaped his fate, only delayed it.

Shiver.

[jobycom]

9. Condolences to the family, friends, and supporters in their difficult time.

And RIP, Senator.

[indepat]

55. Ted beat his legal-problem rap, but none of us will ultimately beat the grim ripper

RIP :cry:

[qanda]

10. RIP Ted Stevens

My condolences to his family and those that loved him.

[laureloak]

11. Sen. Stevens dead

Source: CBS News

"Ted Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator in U.S. history who lost his seat after a corruption conviction that was later dismissed, was killed Tuesday in a small plane crash in Alaska. He was 86."


Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/08/10/national/main6760221.shtml

[cyr330]

12. Can't say I'm sorry to hear it. . .

I'm not glad either, but I'm certainly NOT sorry. . .

[superconnected]

13. Sad to hear he died.

RIP.

[Brickbat]

14. We're all going to die. How awful for his family.

[Name removed]

15. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Green_Lantern]

28. how nice of you....

nt

[MarkInSavannah]

74. Another charitable remark - No wonder the White House thinks some are so out of step. Jeepers!

[davidinalameda]

85. nice to see people keeping it classy

[DesertRat]

16. My heart goes out to the families

I know what they are going through. :cry:

[wisteria]

17. Sad ending. RIP. n/t

[Arctic Dave]

18. Update.

Now the media is saying the are not sure of the condition of Stevens.

Weird.

Seems strange they would give the names of two the people on the plane and not the others. I wonder who else was on the plane.

[Hawkeye-X]

20. His condition is dead.

He can't get that UPGRADED!

[Arctic Dave]

29. He has not been confirmed dead.

The reports saying he is are not fact. They were second hand information from a person who is not sure what he originally said is a fact. (That person being Dave Dittman)

[jobycom]

58. It's been done.

Jesus, Osiris, Mithras, Bobby Ewing...

[KBlagburn]

19. Ex-senator's death NOT CONFIRMED: family friend

http://us.mobile.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE6792MJ20100810?ca=rdt

[babylonsister]

21. Former Senator Ted Stevens Is in Plane Crash

Source: NYT

Former Senator Ted Stevens Is in Plane Crash
By LIZ ROBBINS
Published: August 10, 2010


Former United States Senator Ted Stevens was one of eight people aboard a plane that crashed in southern Alaska on Monday night, a former member of Mr. Stevens’s Congressional staff said on Tuesday.

Five people were believed to have been killed in the crash, and the aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of respect to the family, said it was unclear whether anyone had survived the crash.

Rescue crews from the Alaska Air National Guard and the United States Coast Guard arrived on the scene more than 10 hours after the crash, as rain and fog hampered the efforts.

The European aerospace firm EADS said that the chief executive of its North American operations, Sean O’Keefe, 54, a former NASA administrator, was also on board.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/11/us/11crash.html?src=mv

[BeatleBoot]

22. ...

http://www.ktuu.com/Global/story.asp?S=12952729

[JanMichael]

23. dead

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/former-aide-says-ted-stevens-dead-in-crash-report-2010-08-10

[babylonsister]

24. Yea, I saw that. What a way to go. Sad. nt

[greiner3]

25. So who was the target of the plane crash?

One or both?

[roguevalley]

26. there are about 1500 plane crashes up here that haven't been

found. this is an occupational hazard up here like jaywalking in traffic down there.

[newscott]

27. Didn't he replace a guy who died in a plane crash?

Just curious. I may be wrong.

[Blue_In_AK]

35. No, that was Don Young,

who took the seat held by Nick Begich, Mark Begich's father.

[newscott]

43. Thanks for the info.

[babylonsister]

45. The guy who replaced Stevens, Begich, lost his dad in a

plane crash. Also, Stevens lost his first wife the same way. Remind me not to move to Alaska and do a lot of flying. :(

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens


Marriage and family
Stevens and his wife, Catherine Ann Chandler.

Early in 1952, Stevens married Ann Mary Cherrington, a Democrat and the adopted daughter of University of Denver chancellor Ben Mark Cherrington. She had graduated from Reed College in Portland, Oregon, and during Truman's administration had worked for the State Department.<19>

On December 4, 1978, the crash of a Learjet 25C at Anchorage International Airport killed five people. Ted Stevens survived; his wife, Ann, did not.<22> The building which houses the Alaska chapter of the American Red Cross at 235 East 8th Avenue in Anchorage is named the Ann Stevens Building in her honor.

[alp227]

30. Reports are conflicting right now; i'll decide only once his dead body is taken from plane

Until then I think that it's only speculative yet really possible that Stevens didn't survive.

[Blue_In_AK]

31. Say what you will about Ted Stevens,

he was the ONLY representative from Alaska who ever did anything for me personally. He went to bat for me with HUD in Washington DC when I was sold a HUD house with a defective roof. We got no satisfaction from the agency, but at least he tried and tried hard.

Rest in peace, Uncle Ted.

[renate]

56. that's a nice thing to know

Thanks for that story. It just goes to show that first impressions of a person--or impressions from just the more widely known stories--aren't everything.

RIP, Senator.

[Blue_In_AK]

73. I was not alone.

Shannyn Moore is devoting her radio show to memories of Ted Stevens today, and it seems there are many, many Alaskans who had similar experiences of Ted personally intervening with the PTB, or sending condolences on the death of a parent, or other very personal touches that endeared him to his constitutents. He was a complicated man. As one caller said, he helped himself, for sure, but he helped us, too. It is a sad day for us.

[roguevalley]

80. he helped me also with something. I can't even remember what it

was but I remember he walked back assholes off my face with a letter.

[Seneca]

32. Rescuers arrive to help Alaska plane crash victims

Source: AP

JUNEAU, Alaska – A plane carrying nine people crashed amid southwest Alaska's remote mountains and lakes, killing five people on board, authorities said Tuesday. Former Sen. Ted Stevens and ex-NASA chief Sean O'Keefe were believed to be aboard.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100810/ap_on_bi_ge/us_alaska_plane_crash

[Orrex]

33. The fact that others were on board prevents me from making a "plane to nowhere joke" about Stevens

Admit it--you were thinking it too.

[greiner3]

34. When I first saw the red special message;

I thought it said, 'Stop sending this person naked pictures of him/her self.'

Isn't the internet wonderful?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

37. Condolences to the family

[Name removed]

38. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Carni]

39. Did Cheney's buddy O'Keefe die too?

How ironic that would be given the space shuttle debacle.

[AngryOldDem]

40. Still awaiting word.

I imagine it won't be long before they announce.

RIP, Mr. Stevens.

[trayfoot]

42. CNN HAS Announced Stevens' Death

[AngryOldDem]

44. I know that.

Have it on my TV. But there doesn't seem to be official word on O'Keefe yet.

[AnnetteJacobs]

41. Wow!

:wow:

[Rhiannon12866]

46. Just heard on CNN that all they know is that he was aboard...

Sad news for everyone... :(

[Rhiannon12866]

47. Updated: CNN reporting that Ted Stevens "perished..." n/t

[Dennis Donovan]

99. "Perished" indicates he was perishable to begin with...

:silly:

[Rhiannon12866]

120. That's the word they used...

Poor man, he must have been pretty frail at his age. :(

[derby378]

48. My condolences to his family and friends

Losing a loved one is devastating, especially in circumstances like this. The Stevens family has my deepest sympathies.

[elmerdem]

49. no matter how much

I despised him politically, this is truly sad. RIP

[DainBramaged]

50. I feel as bad about this as if it were Rush limbaugh who had died

:think:

[Lucian]

51. Meh.

[Withywindle]

52. Condolences to his family and friends. n/t

[mitchum]

53. The Postman Always Rings Twice

yes, indeed

[Ter]

54. Who killed him?

There is no way in hell this was a n accident. He knew too much.

[onenote]

59. there are a lot of folks on that other site that think the way you do

which may be reason enough for you to reexamine your position.

BTW, do you know how often small planes crash in Alaska?

[Ter]

60. Which site, Freek Repuklic?

Why would they say that? I'm not saying the Left had him killed, I'm implying the neo-con killers had him killed because he knew too much and was a threat to go public.

[Bryn]

57. If anyone would read wikipedia you will see Ted had done many good things in his life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens

RIP

[Bragi]

61. So will Sarah Palin run for the seat?

If so, would she win?

[Brother Buzz]

68. No seat is up for grabs....

But you can bet she will run for the pew, front and center, at the funeral, "Look at me, look at me".

[Bragi]

106. Thanks. I had a brain fart on this. /nt

[corkhead]

62. Former Senator Ted Stevens Is Killed in a Plane Crash

Source: NY Times

Former United States Senator Ted Stevens was killed in a plane crash in southwestern Alaska on Monday night, a former member of Mr. Stevens’s Congressional staff said on Tuesday.

There were nine people on board, and five were believed to have been killed in the crash, authorities said. Mr. Stevens, who had been the longest serving Republican in the United States Senate, was 86.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/11/us/11crash.html?src=me

---

Ted's taken his bridge to nowhere...

[EFerrari]

63. I'm so sorry for his family.

Especially those kids that lost both parents in plane crashes.

[BlueDemKev]

64. Very Sad

Regardless of my political differences with Sen. Stevens, I feel very sorry for his family. How ironic that his wife was killed in a plane crash over 30 years ago (which Sen. Stevens survived), and now he has perished the same way.

RIP Ted Stevens:-(

[Billy Burnett]

65. "There are no coincidences. ...

... Only the appearance of coincidence."

[Hangingon]

66. Sorry to hear about anyone 's death

Flying in Alaska is dangerous. I don't think Hale Boggs crash site has ever been found. Glad the NASA guy is a survivor.

[name not needed]

67. my care tube is empty

[Xenotime]

69. Exactly.

[Dennis Donovan]

98. Rest in peace, Ted. You were the very definition of cantankerous...

...and your "series of tubes" speech will make me laugh for many years to come.

[Rhiannon12866]

123. +1000

Me, too. I've thought of that speech, and Sam Seder's AAR parody, more times than I can count. It's a classic... :D

[Xenotime]

70. I thought he was in jail What gives?

[Blue_In_AK]

75. His conviction was overturned.

Prosecutorial misconduct.

[No Elephants]

79. Not overturned at all. Holder simply dropped charges after Stevens was convicted.

"On July 29, 2008, Stevens was indicted by a federal grand jury on seven counts of failing to report gifts received from VECO Corporation and its CEO Bill Allen on his Senate financial disclosure forms, formally charged with violation of provisions of the Ethics in Government Act. Stevens pleaded not guilty and asserted his right to a speedy trial, which began on September 25 in Washington, DC, to have the opportunity to clear his name before the November election. On October 27, 2008, barely a week before the election, Stevens was found guilty on all seven counts.<2><3> On April 1, 2009, United States Attorney General Eric Holder, citing serious prosecutorial misconduct during the trial, decided to drop all charges against Stevens—an action that vacated his conviction.<4>"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Stevens

[Blue_In_AK]

81. Vacated, overturned -- it's all semantics.

Bottom line, the conviction didn't stick.

[Xenotime]

82. Ah. He got the Ken Lay treatment.

[Blue_In_AK]

84. A little different, but the final outcome was the same,

assuming, of course, that Ken Lay isn't lounging around in the Bahamas somewhere.

[24601]

83. That's what's supposed to happen when the prosecutors break the

law. The tainted conviction is invalidated.

[Renew Deal]

71. Horrible news.

:wow:

[shockra]

72. RIP

I was just watching a Buffy episode last night called "Ted," and thinking how sad it was that guest star John Ritter died young. Now I won't be able to watch it again without thinking of Mr. Stevens. Weirdness.

I'm glad my dad and sister gave up flying small planes. Not too safe up here.

[Tx4obama]

76. O'Keefe and SON reported alive. No word yet on Stevens' SON.

ORLANDO, Fla. — A former NASA spokesman says ex-NASA chief Sean O'Keefe survived the plane crash in Alaska that killed former Sen. Ted Stevens.

Glenn Mahone (Muh-HOHN') says O'Keefe's teenage son, Kevin, was also among the four survivors.

[Blue_In_AK]

86. I haven't heard that Ben was on the plane.

[Tx4obama]

87. Earler today two cable TV stations were saying the sons of O'Keefe & Stevens' were with them n/t

[Tx4obama]

100. It appears he wasn't. Here's the LIST

From CNN

The Alaska Department of Public Safety identified the deceased as
Sen. Stevens, of Anchorage, Alaska;
Theron "Terry" Smith, 62, of Eagle River, Alaska (pilot);
William "Bill" Phillips Sr.;
Dana Tindall, 48, of Anchorage, Alaska;
Corey Tindall, 16, of Anchorage, Alaska.
The bodies have been recovered.

Injured were
William "Willy" Phillips Jr., 13;
Sean O'Keefe, 54;
Kevin O'Keefe;
and Jim Morhard, Alexandria, Virginia.
Alaska's FAA office said two survivors had serious injuries and two had minor injuries and were hospitalized in Anchorage.

[Blue_In_AK]

110. Yes, I saw that on tonight's news.

I feel most sorry for the 13-year-old son of Bill Phillips, who was conscious with a broken ankle. How awful having to wait out there for rescue with your deceased father. My own brother went through a similar thing at about the same age, a car crash when my mother was killed and father severely injured (I was not with them). It's a very traumatizing event for a teenage kid.

[Mad_Dem_X]

77. Condolences to the family. n/t

[Hyper_Eye]

78. RIP

[eirteacher]

88. He was an A$$HOLE and should have died in prison.

He was an ASSHOLE and should have died in prison. Next to kick the bucket .... Dick Cheney

[MarkInSavannah]

91. Ah yes.......another class act. You and your rhetoric typify why so many use the word "unhinged"!

[Autumn Colors]

89. & I heard about it on a series of tubes.... (nt)

[DebbieCDC]

90. Yawn

[Libertas1776]

92. No one should ever...

no one should ever have to go that way, i don't care who you are. Well, he is with his lifelong friend Byrd now. RIP.

[Ken Burch]

119. I don't know. In a way, it's not so bad.

You're all set for a fishing trip. You're sitting there swapping stories with a good friend. The last thing you see is a beautiful vista of forest and water. Then, it's just suddenly over.

Better that than having to lie in a nursing home with an IV in your arm and your mind gone for years and years.

[appleannie1]

93. Former Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens dies in plane crash

Source: http://www.businessweek.com/

A single-engine plane carrying former Sen. Ted Stevens crashed into a remote Alaska mountainside, killing the state's most beloved political figure and four others and stranding the survivors on brush-and-rock-covered slopes overnight until rescuers could reach them.

Volunteers discovered the wreckage late Monday and tended to the injured, including Stevens' fishing buddy, ex-NASA chief Sean O'Keefe, until help could arrive Tuesday.

Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9HGTELO1.htm

[HEyHEY]

94. "beloved political figure" that's a stretch

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

95. True. But I'll always be grateful to Ted Stevens for explaining

that the Internet is a series of tubes.

[Blue_In_AK]

111. Seriously beloved in Alaska, HEyHEY.

He really did a lot for the state and for individual people here (including me). We had our differences politically, of course, but he was an old-style Republican -- pro women's rights, pro-choice, not averse to working across the aisle.

I won't lionize him - I know he had his issues - but he was a great senator for Alaska.

[HEyHEY]

121. Really? All I ever associate him with is dirty oil bribes

Didn't know aside from that he was a decent guy.

[valerief]

96. At least no estate tax this year. That probably is important to his Republican relatives.

Because it creates jobs. Yup.

[midnight]

97. Was his court case finished?

[Blue_In_AK]

112. Yes.

Prosecutorial misconduct. The conviction was dropped.

[wookie72]

126. Late to the party here..

Bu for anyone who is saying "good riddance," I ask two questions:

1) Are you female?
2) Did you ever play a college sport?

If so, you might want to read this:

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/league-of-her-own/2010/08/rip-ted-stevens-sponsor-of-title-ix.html

[lanlady]

101. Paul Wellstone was a tragedy

but this corrupt 86-year-old bastard... not so much.

[ButterflyBlood]

102. Well at least he got plenty of time

I really find it just too bizarre and wrong in a way for a man that old to die of non-natural causes. RIP.

[Name removed]

103. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[northofdenali]

104. Like I said on another post (and added it to my journal)

exact quote:

" I'll answer without reading any of the replies -
and probably live to regret it............

Sen. Ted Stevens did more (especially that great pork) for the state of Alaska than any other representative we've ever had. I first met "Uncle Ted" in 1972, the year I graduated from a small Alaska high school. He personally congratulated me on my grades, my test scores and extracurricular activities, the sports I'd been in, and called Mom & Dad by name. And yes, he meant it. I later received a letter of congratulations from him when I'd been accepted to college. It was, in 1972 now, on recycled paper.

His politics were not mine, but until Big Oil took over this state, he was very much an Eisenhauer Republican. He bent, he compromised, he voted with the opposition on many, many occasions. In short, he was a statesman. I don't think he did badly for the nation, either; he was opposed to the Viet Nam war and very cautious about entering any others.

He never, ever pushed the extreme RW agenda or played Tea Partier. He was a good man, and now he's gone, and dammit, I'll miss him.

So take that, ideologues. There's good in everyone - and in Sen. Ted Stevens, there was a lot more of it than in many who denounce him."

We'll miss your undeniable presence, Uncle Ted.

He also got a really large kick out of everyone from children to very aged adults calling him "Uncle" and, at the last community BBQ where I spoke with him, also got a huge charge out of everyone teasing him about the "intertubes".

He was a man with a great sense of humor and humanity. His views weren't mine; he became somewhat corrupted toward the end, but not nearly as much as most. He never bought into the "Contract for a New America". In fact, he was more bipartisan than even most Dems. I regret that he's gone, but he lived one HELL of a life; WWII flyer and post-WWII pilot (bush type) to Senior Senator in a state where that, at the very minimum, used to require BALLS (whether male or female) - if you didn't have 'em, out you went - bye, Sarah..

I see him viewed in the same R party as is Sarah Palin and it makes me wonder still again, where have all the Republicans gone? Gone to Tea Parties, everyone? When will they ever learn?

RIP Senator Stevens. Condolences to your family (I wish Ben had turned out to be half the man you are) and remember, Ann is waiting over the rainbow for you. Catherine, you also served long and well, always in behind but forever memorable - he'll wait for you; you are a beautiful wife and woman.

So fucking trash me, DU, for admiring a man I've known for 40+ years. At this point, crying for a wonderful man, I don't care.

[Catherine Vincent]

107. That is a very noble post.

You should not be trashed for that.

RIP

[onenote]

109. thank you for posting

My politics and Senator Stevens' politics were obviously different, but I met the man a couple of times in connection with my work and the fact that I wasn't a supporter didn't effect the way he dealt with me. Through my work and the work of my wife, we got to know some of his staff over the years and they were generally very capable, fair people -- not ideologues.

My guess is that those here that are dancing on his grave or otherwise being disrespectful never had a personal encounter with the man.

[Blue_In_AK]

113. You'll get no trashing from me, NOD.

Ted Stevens did good by me, too. When I had trouble with my HUD house and the leaky roof, he took my issue right to the head of the Department in Washington, DC, and tried to twist arms. We weren't successful going that route, unfortunately, but at least he tried and tried hard. I never even got a response to my letters from Frank or Don. Ted really did care for all Alaskans, not just those who voted for him -- although I did vote for him several times, and I'm not ashamed to say it. (Who else was I going to vote for -- Theresa? :rofl: )

It's sad that we lost Wally and Ted within such a short time. I miss them both. Truly great Alaskans.

:hug:

By the way, I'm sorry we didn't get up your way this summer, but the weather has been so crappy we've hardly made it out of town at all.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

115. RIP

I never got the sense that Stevens was evil or some kind of die-hard wingnut.
He always struck me as a Republican of another era who's gone astray with the power of incumbency.

As someone who comes from a small state that benefited from the career of a longtime senator (Byrd), I understand completely how you can admire his accomplishments. Following my senator's death, there were numerous attacks, the worst cam from Time magazine, who called him a windbag and questioned why smaller states should be allowed to amass clout with seniority. the writer of the piece didn't understand that one man's pork is another man's needed infrastructure. Sure, the bridge to nowhere was overboard - though I think it was really more of Don young's baby. But if states like ours didn't have people like Byrd and Stevens to get in there and devote their lives to the Senate, all public investments would go to NY, TX, CA and Fla. And the rest of the U.S. would be screwed and treated as irrelevant.

Stevens was flawed, no doubt, but I could never bring myself to hate him, and I'm truly saddened by his passing.

[kestrel91316]

105. Proof that one can only thwart a just god so many times........

[onenote]

108. And what then does the death of JFK and Teddy prove?

Both survived life threatening events earlier in life. Your post is, with all due respect, crap.

[proteus_lives]

117. +1

[northofdenali]

125. If you're speaking of flying in small planes -

Alaskans thwart God daily. I've been known to hop on one to go 150 miles to Coldfoot, because the drive woud take HOURS and the plane? A few minutes.

Sen. Ted never wanted to thwart god. He just wanted to be the left-hand man for a little while.

Thanks Blue! You see the legend as I do - all too human, and so very willing to give.

[white_wolf]

114. This points out the difference

between the Left and Right. When Ted Kennedy died I remember some RWers being happy and Rush cheering.

[Ken Burch]

118. Ted was a massive figure in Alaska history

Not someone I would ever have voted for, and not someone I agreed with on much of anything(he was pro-choice, I'll give him that)
Ted was incredibly effective in getting what he wanted. What he wanted was often not good(he was heavily responsible for the fact that virtually no effort has been put into the objective of creating an Alaskan economy that isn't driven by massive resource extraction), but he was unbeatable for years largely due to the fact that, in one way or another, most people here, frankly, owed him something. Tons of infrastructure, a lot of things for Alaska Natives.

We won't have a senator like that again in Alaska. I don't think there will be one like that in the country(or one like Senator Byrd, or like Teddy). The day of that sort of perpetually re-elected senator is coming to an end. I don't know what we'll get in its place.

[Vidar]

122. Hell has another denizen.

[Hawkowl]

124. I wish he could have lived a miserable existence

At least for several more years. But barring that, good riddance.