REMEMBERING ANDREW BREITBART

Andrew J. Breitbart, 1969-2012

The activism of Andrew Breitbart and his good friend Bill Whittle and their focus on the societal cancer known as cultural Marxism and it's most malignant tumor - political correctness - inspired me to create this blog.  Friday marked the one-year anniversary of Breitbart's untimely death.  This is a collection of tributes and remembrances written by his friends and colleagues.  His passing was a terrible loss. The example he set, however, and the enthusiasm and gleeful joy with which he fought the good fight lives on.  I'm proud to proclaim: Breitbart Is Here!


Andrew: One Year Later - Larry Solov
"The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long." - Lao Tzu...  The funny thing is, Andrew would give me an endless hard time for quoting Lao Tzu--pretentious, he’d say. But Andrew did live larger than life--which made his sudden passing so truly hard to believe and accept.  He was a flame that burned twice as bright. It was in his DNA. I know. I knew him since he was less than one year old. But if Andrew’s flame burned half as long, his legacy will never burn out. To the contrary, it will only burn brighter and brighter. It is one of love and laughter, of an amazing family consisting of his widow Susie and their four extraordinary young children, and of a friend, a patriot and a happy warrior.

Meeting Some Guy Named Andrew - Ben Shapiro
When I was 17 years old, a sophomore at UCLA and the token conservative columnist at the Daily Bruin, I received an odd email. It was from some guy named Andrew, who worked at the Drudge Report. He said he’d read one of my recent columns, and suggested we get together. A few days later, I walked into a Mexican restaurant on Broxton in Westwood. There, waiting for me and fanatically tapping on his phone, was Andrew. For the next 11 years, we were close friends. He was a mentor, probably the most loyal person I ever knew. If you were in a foxhole, you wanted Andrew next to you. He knew the fight, and he knew how to fight it.

Andrew Breitbart's Last Speech to the Team: Seek, and Expose, the Left - Joel B. Pollak
Andrew gathered the editorial team in the center of our former office, a giant warehouse space with a row of desks above overlooking a recreation area below. We were just a few days from the re-launch of the website. Most of the editorial staff, scattered around the country, had flown to LA for a week of intense training in the new technology that would power the website. While we learned, we still had to work, putting up posts and videos. To the muffled sound of typing, Andrew began his pep talk.

A Walk With Andrew - John Nolte
Though we had communicated almost daily via instant message, email, and telephone since my move across the country to North Carolina, this was the first time Andrew Breitbart and I had seen one another in almost nine months. The occasion was training for the about-to-launch Breitbart News 2.0 (the platform you’re reading this article on) and that meant a two-day trip back to Los Angeles, which I almost didn't make due to the flu. Once training was over and things wound down, Andrew came up to me out of the blue and said, "Let's take a walk." And for over an hour, we walked through the neighborhood around the office and had one of those great Andrew talks (those who knew Andrew know exactly what that means).

Help Us Andrew Breitbart, You're Our Only Hope - Larry O'Connor
Help me, Andrew.  I have a problem that only you can solve.  I'm supposed to write something for the site and I'm past my deadline. I just can't figure out how to write it. How many times in the past were you able to help me with this problem, Andrew? I'd IM you, BoDiaz, and you would condense the topic I was wrestling with down to one, perfect headline. You were able to cut through all the distractions of a complicated topic and focus me on the real story.

Andrew Breitbart: A Leader Who Adopted a Movement - Mike Flynn
"But, why?!?" Andrew implored. "That's just crazy. Who are these people?" "These people" were the general conservative and Republican establishment, both in DC and around the country. It was late 2003 or early 2004. (As I get older, dates get fuzzier.) We were sitting around my kitchen table and Andrew, in the middle of IMing a dozen people and checking his fantasy baseball stats, was peppering me with questions about the inner workings of DC. Why weren't Republicans doing A or B? Why were conservatives doing X or Y? He seemed stunned that they didn't see the world he saw everyday.

Breitbart in the World - Stephen K. Bannon
In all of today's tributes and remembrances to the late Andrew Breitbart, there is a common core, a central touch point. Andrew Breitbart was passionately doing something. Andrew Breitbart was accomplishing something. Andrew Breitbart was fighting for something, relentlessly and often in the face of incredible opposition. Andrew Breitbart was empowering somebody. Andrew Breitbart was the quintessential happy warrior. Andrew Breitbart was a man of action.

Andrew Breitbart Inspired Me With Passion - Matthew Boyle
Though I didn’t join the Breitbart News team until after the 2012 election, eight months after Andrew Breitbart passed away, I was always really close with him personally.  Andrew inspired me with his passion. I had never met anyone with so much energy before, and I haven’t since I first crossed paths with him.

Andrew Understood What Republicans May Never Learn - Lee Stranahan
The world is one year into its post-Andrew Breitbart phase and I'm sitting here torn about two paths I could take in trying to connect with you about him. My first instinct is to play the pundit and pontificate on his importance and the long term impact I think Andrew Breitbart is going to have on American politics; he deserves that treatment because he was a serious person who made a deep impact. On the other hand, I knew Andrew Breitbart and loved him and don't want to reduce the man to a set of political talking points because that wasn't HIM, you dig?

A Friend In Hollywood - Lauren Veneziani
I learned about Andrew Breitbart and his "Big" sites a few years ago, after I graduated from college and started gaining an interest in politics. Ever since I was young, I loved movies and sharing my thoughts about them with friends and family. Obviously, because of my strong passion for film, Andrew's entertainment website, "Big Hollywood" popped up on my radar, and I was immediately interested in contributing.

Andrew Breitbart's Journalistic Legacy Alive and Well - Jason Stverak
Recently, I was on a flight back from Los Angeles when I noticed an old version of Wired magazine in the seat-back in front of me. As I flipped past an article on the YouTube revolution and a quiz on what type of cyborg I "want to be," I happened on a 2010 profile of Andrew. I couldn't think of a timelier reminder of his impact on journalism.

Breitbart On How Being Adopted Shaped His Views On Abortion - Lisa De Pasquale
One of my favorite speeches given by Andrew Breitbart was about an issue he had never previously talked about -- how his adoption shaped his pro-life views.

'Sure': The Andrew We Knew - Lisa De Pasquale
Like many in the Breitbart.com family, I was shocked when I heard the news.  As I suspect others did, I furiously looked through my phone and email for my last communication with Andrew.  It was as if seeing his words meant he was still here. The last word Andrew texted to me was "Sure."  It was in response to a text from me asking if he had a moment to talk that day.  That was Andrew in a nutshell.  He didn't ask what it was about or if he could put it off.  He just said, "Sure."

Andrew Breitbart: That Enduring 'Excitable Boy' Spirit - Liberty Chick
I'll never forget the first phone call I received from Andrew Breitbart.  He just called me out of the blue, with this "excitable boy" sort of voice that caught me off guard.
 
"Hey. Liberty Chick?"
 
"Um, yes," I answered hesitantly, completely unaware of who was actually calling me by the name Liberty Chick on the other end of the phone.
 
"Hey, LC.  Andrew Breitbart. I love your stuff.  I want you to come work with me."

Andrew Breitbart, Friend to the Tea Party - Jenny Beth Martin
Sadly, I did not know Andrew Breitbart as well as some others in the Tea Party and conservative movements. Andrew and I spoke on the same Tea Party circuit and at many of the same events in the Tea Party and liberty movement over the last two years of his life. We would chat at these events and I always admired not just his work but also his vigorous and enthusiastic personality. He was never a defeatist and always took on the challenges of fighting for the causes that he championed—and that many of us now continue.

Happy Warrior's Legacy Lives On - Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)
One year ago, conservatives everywhere received the shocking news that Andrew Breitbart had passed away. He was only 43 years old. I am proud to have been able to work with him and call him a friend. Andrew and I spent countless hours together tackling the big issues, and I was honored to speak at his memorial service. His kindness, enthusiasm, and passion were infectious. Andrew had a gift and a way of making us all feel like we were his best friends. We lost a dear friend and ally last year, but he won’t be forgotten.

He Ensured Conservatives Never Felt Alone - Tony Lee
Andrew Breitbart was inspired by Jackie Robinson, was proud to cheer for a Dodgers franchise that broke baseball's color barrier, and despised what the Democrat-Media Complex did to Clarence Thomas.

Andrew's Faith In New Media - John Sexton
In 2009 Andrew was a featured speaker at a conference held here in California. I was one of a group of bloggers who were invited to a private chat with him. The video I shot that day--October 17, 2009--captured a moment in time. It had only been a month since the release of the ACORN videos and there was a new sense that anything was possible for the conservative new media.

I Miss You, Andrew Breitbart - Jedediah Bila
I met Andrew Breitbart in person for the first time a few years ago in a Manhattan restaurant. Along with a few mutual friends, we laughed, we ate dinner, and we talked about everything from politics to education to reality television to Westwood. I loved his sense of humor; he was funny without trying to be funny. I immediately understood why he and my friend Greg Gutfeld were so close.

Joining Andrew Breitbart in the Scrum - Rebel Pundit
I remember how surreal it was to be introduced to Andrew Breitbart. I would bet that, at the time, most people who didn’t regularly follow politics wouldn’t have known who Andrew Breitbart was. But for those of us who did, he was quickly becoming larger than life.

The Art of #WAR - Meredith Dake
Many people saw Andrew Breitbart as a general, a man of vision who could see all the players on the field and inspire those around him to engage. He was that, but he also stood on the hill and rattled sabers. He was a tactician, a student, a mentor, and a motivator. Among his many talents, he had the unique ability to get his friends and his enemies to sit around with some drinks and have a good time. The way that Andrew lived his life--and make no mistake, this is not a job, it's a lifestyle--reminds me of the words of Sun Tzu, the famous military strategist.

Breitbart: Typical Grandma's Boy - Allen Covert
I met Andrew Breitbart the way most conservatives in Los Angeles meet. A friend from D.C. introduced us. After we had known each other for a few years, I invited Andrew one night to the cast and crew screening of a movie I had just finished, called Grandma’s Boy. I saw him in the lobby beforehand and he was his usual hyper-kinetic self. Bouncing around, talking to everyone, making friends with strangers. I'll never forget his reaction after the movie. He grabbed me and said, "I loved it. Thank G-d. I was so nervous that it was going to suck and I wouldn't know how to tell you." He then went on to tell me that it might be his new favorite movie.

Andrew's Politics: He Hated Bullies - Jeremy D. Boreing
I first met Andrew Breitbart sitting in a secret meeting at an undisclosed location for an organization that doesn't exist.

One Year On - Ace of Spades
The largest compliment Breitbart could give someone was, "He's a warrior." All men respect guts, and Breitbart more than most men. I think on this anniversary of his death we should honor him -- and ourselves -- by seeking to be Warriors. And not just in politics, though certainly that was where Breitbart encouraged it the most frequently. Breitbart himself lived a brave life, confident in himself, always questioning and always questing. He made himself bigger than life by living as outrageously as he could.

Ah, Andrew, We'll Always Have Mexico - Warner Todd Huston
I was never as close to Andrew as many of the others at Breitbart News, but I met him dozens of times at the events we both covered and attended and we grew close enough that he soon remembered my name. We frequently went to dinner at these events, visited each other's hotel rooms, and socialized with the same ever-growing group of bloggers, politicos and media types. Andrew was a force of nature, for sure. He was everywhere at once, attended every conservative gathering of note.

Andrew Breitbart and the Meaning of #WAR - Elena Lathrop
On March 1st, 2012, I woke up to a text message from a friend I had lost touch with over the previous year. Naturally, I was intrigued. It had to be something important. And it was not just a single text message, it was a group thread addressed to several other conservative friends of mine. It read "Andrew Breitbart died…at 43. RIP."

Enlisting in Breitbart's Culture War - Christian Toto
The terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001 made me a conservative. Andrew Breitbart convinced me to put on a helmet and join the culture war. My political awakening began under the gimlet eyes of conservatives like Charles Krauthammer, Rush Limbaugh and Mark Steyn. They proved invaluable in their own unique way, and slowly I saw how liberals often saw only the worst in the country. Our country. That wasn't me.

Pop Cultural Conservatism, Year One A.B. (After Breitbart) - Thaddeus G. McCotter
It's been a year since we lost Andrew Breitbart.  In sorrow, we’ll reflect upon what was, what wasn't, and what is: specifically, the fate of Andrew's "Pop-Cultural Conservatism."

The Year After Breitbart - Andrew Klavan
For a few weeks after Andrew Breitbart's death, I allowed my personal sorrow to color my worldview. All around me, I heard brave voices saying that Andrew's spirit would never die, that fresh hands would pick up the torch that had fallen with his passing, and that "Breitbart is here," as long as we all stand up together for the truth. In my sadness, I did not believe any of it.

Unmasking the Left With Andrew - David Bossie
It's almost impossible for me to believe that it's been a year since we lost Andrew Breitbart. He was a conservative leader, larger-than-life personality, a husband, a father of young children, and a dear friend of mine for over 15 years. The conservative movement feels his loss deeply and his absence is noticed every day. Even in death he still has a lasting impact on the blogosphere as an innovator and champion of "trickle-up journalism."

Breitbart Is Here - Andrew Marcus
In the course of making the documentary Hating Breitbart, I had the rare opportunity to travel the country with Andrew, bearing witness to some of the most dramatic moments during the last few years of his life. When Andrew was in the early stages of launching Big Government with the release of the now-famous ACORN tapes, my cameras were there. When Andrew rushed to the defense of the Tea Party and offered $100,000 for any shred of evidence to back up the race libel told by the Congressional Black Caucus that the N-word had been hurled at Congressmen John Lewis and Andre Carson, my cameras were there. When Harry Reid's henchmen of the Las Vegas IBEW hurled eggs at a Tea Party Express bus and then made false claims to police blaming Andrew for throwing the eggs, my cameras were there.

Fearless: The Art of Andrew Breitbart - Jimmy Arone
Andrew Breitbart was a force of nature. A merry prankster, who loved life, lived it passionately; each day to the max. A man who truly was FEARLESS. When I heard the news on that fateful morning, I was in shock. I didn't know what to do. It took a few days for reality to set in. He was gone. It wasn't until about a week later, while sitting there alongside his family, with so many of his friends, at his memorial service that it came to me. Listening to their stories, one minute laughing, the next filled with tears in my eyes. I know what I can do...I can make art. Andrew would love that.

Original Song: I Can't Stand To Say Goodbye - John Ondrasik
I see Andrew every day. When I fire up my buddy list there is Bodiaz bringing his dose of happy-sad. Thanks, someone, for not turning his computer off. On the one-year anniversary of his death, many folks will speak of Andrew’s loss to the cause. Go ahead and cube that vacuum a few times. It's true, in some measure he lives on in all of us. When I was out campaigning for Romney last year, all my tough decisions were decided by a simple What Would Andrew Do?

TRIBUTES AND REMEMBERANCES OF ANDREW BREITBART FROM AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE

RIP, Andrew Breitbart, the Ultimate Happy Warrior - Ed Driscoll, PJM

We Have Failed Andrew - For God and Liberty

Andrew Breitbart, RIP - Joshuapundit

Remembering Breitbart - Guy Benson, Townhall

One Year Later: Remembering Andrew Breitbart - Kristina Ribali, Freedom Works

Breitbart Awards 2013: Celebrating Andrew's Legacy, Honoring the Next Warriors - Rob Bluey, Erik Telford, Heritage

Breitbart From the Outside - Liz Harrison (GoldwaterGal), CDN

One Year Ago Today, Andrew Breitbart Died - William A. Jacobson, Legal Insurrection

Remembering Andrew Breitbart, One Year Later - Breeanne Howe, Red State

The Man in the Arena: Remembering Andrew Breitbart - Sarah Rumpf, Sunshine State Sarah   

Remembering Breitbart: "Conservatives used to take it, and we're not taking it anymore!" - Sara Marie Brenner, The Brenner Brief

One Year Later - Dana Loesch, The Dana Show

The Legacy of Andrew Breitbart: A Warrior and a Friend - Andrew Darby, via Elizabeth Meinecke, Townhall

Andrew Breitbart: Lessons Learned - Tami Jackson, The Black Sphere

Andrew Breitbart Was My Friend - Jason Weisberger

Reflections On Missing Andrew Breitbart - Shifra, Tammy Bruce website