Left-wing writer and pundit Eric Boehlert, who frequently clashed with Andrew Breitbart, died Monday in New Jersey after he was struck by a train while riding his bicycle.
A New Jersey Transit train struck Boehlert, 57, and his bicycle in Montclair near the Watchung Avenue station Monday night. He was a long-time Montclair resident with his wife of 29 years, Tracy Breslin, and was frequently seen riding his bike around town.
Boehlert worked for George Soros-funded Media Matters, was a co-founder of Salon.com, and frequently appeared on CNN and CNBC. He authored two books Lapdogs: How the Press Rolled Over for Bush and Bloggers on the Bus, and he ran the blog site Press Run, dedicated to media issues.
He and Andrew Breitbart sparred on Twitter many times over issues and positions.
Mean tweets
Eric Boehlert blogger @EricBoehlert continues to spin wheels over deflated ‘birther’ meme as political weapon.
— AndrewBreitbart (@AndrewBreitbart) May 17, 2011
The tweets between Boehlert and Breitbart ranged from teasing to attacks.
@EricBoehlert For example, you could get @DavidCornDC to tweet: ‘Some have neatly trimmed beards, but few as handsome as my man Boehlert’s!’
— AndrewBreitbart (@AndrewBreitbart) November 11, 2010
Just reconnected Facebook to Twitter. It’s been a few months. Apologies to my friends. Will get back to busting Boehlert’s balls ASAP.
— AndrewBreitbart (@AndrewBreitbart) July 6, 2010
Condolences about Breitbart
When Breitbart died in March 2012, however, Boehlert offered sincere condolences despite the political differences between them and the nasty comments of others regarding his death.
Condolences to Andrew Breitbart’s friends and family today. He was a force of nature and a passionate foe.
— Eric Boehlert (@EricBoehlert) March 1, 2012
The headline of Breitbart News’s article about the death of Boehlert seemed to be in kind reading, “Eric Boehlert, Andrew Breitbart’s Worthy Left-Wing Opponent, Dies at 57.”
Breitbart died of heart failure at age 43, but his website and relentless debunking of left-wing narratives lives on.