"Katie for 15 years you've started the morning for millions of Americans you've started the morning for millions of Americans with your bright smile, serious reporting and playful sense of humor. Your ability to relate to your guests to convey their humanity and the importance of their stories is a unique quality which sets you apart in your field. You've got another unique quality too which politicians like me have come to respect. You can be so disarming right before you hit us with a zinger of a question we really don't want to answer but that too is part of your job. Your courageous and groundbreaking stories on colon cancer raised the consciousness of countless Americans and no doubt saved many lives. Hillary and I wish you the best of luck in this next step in your remarkable career. It's high time we got the news of the day from an accomplished woman. There's no one who deserves it more or who will do it better than you."
Overwhelmingly those who offered their well-wishes to Katie were liberal friends of her's. The closest the segments came to a conservative was Karen Hughes. In the interest of brevity the list is restricted to those of a political persuasion. The likes of Michelle Kwan, Paula Abdul and Miss Piggy were left off the list:
Liberal Politicians:
Al Gore
Madeleine Albright
Hillary Clinton
Bill Clinton
Liberal Reporters:
Tim Russert
Brian Williams
Stone Phillips
Barbara Walters
Tom Brokaw
Diane Sawyer
Charlie Gibson
Robin Roberts
Maria Shriver
Liberal Celebrities:
George Clooney
Jon Stewart
Jon Bon Jovi
Ben Affleck
Sting
Steven Spielberg
Michael J. Fox
Liberal Businessman:
Bill Gates
Republicans:
Colin Powell
Rudy Giuliani
Karen Hughes
Condoleezza Rice
