Terry Moran: Defending his brother’s honor

ABC’s Terry Moran has taken heat from conservatives in the past.

Now, he’s getting flak from left-wing critics for questioning the wisdom of John Edwards’ blogging staff. Those critics have also been attacking his blogging brother, Rick (hat tip: Greg Tinti).

What’s so admirable and deeply moving to me is the way these two brothers, who have very different political views, defend each other unequivocally despite their differences.

Here’s what Rick wrote a few years ago when his brother came under fire:

I happen to know that, despite what you might think, my brother is a loyal American who loves this country as much as I do. Only good things can flow from that. His job is to ask questions of people in power. Only good things can flow from that. And if it upsets you about the way he does his job, don’t come to this site or email me. Go to the ABC website and talk to them. I am not responsible for how my brother performs his job.

I am responsible for the content of this site which will be unrelenting in its criticism of the MSM and its anti-Bush, anti-war bias – sentiments my brother mostly agreed with on Hugh Hewitt’s show earlier today. The only responsibility toward my brother that I have is the love and affection I feel toward him and his family and the tremendous pride I take in his professional accomplishments.

In a family of 10 children (9 of whom are more liberal than I am) you can imagine some of the dinner table discussions – especially when we were coming of age in the 1970’s. But whatever knock-down, drag-em-out fights that ensued we never lost our love and respect for each other. Blood is thicker than politics. Don’t believe me? Try coming here and dissing my brother…you’ll get an earful back.

And here is what Terry wrote on his blog this week:

Many of you have noted that I am the brother of Rick Moran, who writes the Right Wing Nuthouse blog, and you have concluded that I am somehow in cahoots with Rick, or share his view of the world. For the record, I had no idea Rick was writing about this subject when I posted yesterday. But far more important: I love my brother something fierce. I am very proud of him. We do not agree on many, many things (as decades of uncomfortably loud dinner table disagreements have demonstrated). In no way do I endorse anything he writes; that’s not for me to do here. But I will never disavow him. I will always defend him as an honorable man. And I really don’t care what anyone says about it. He is my brother.

Shining rays of decency and brotherly love. Thank you, Rick and Terry, for your bright light.