Robert Novak Dies
Conservative columnist and irascible TV commentator Robert Novak has passed away after a long battle with brain cancer, Novak’s wife has told the Associated Press.
He was 78 years old.
Known as the “Prince of Darkness” – which happens to be the title he took for his 2007 memoir – Novak spent two-and-a-half decades on CNN co-hosting shows like Crossfire and Capital Gang. He was also a nationally-syndicated columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and editor of the nation’s longest-running political report until February of 2009.
After being booted from CNN in 2005 for swearing on-air at James Carville (seriously, can you blame the guy?) he was an occasional commentator on FOX News.
Novak disputed the widely-held contention that he was leaving the “Commie News Network,” as its detractors called it, for more right-wing media pastures.
“In 25 years I was never censored by CNN and I said some fairly outrageous things and some very conservative things,” he said. “I don’t want to give the impression that they were muzzling me and I had to go to a place that wouldn’t muzzle me.”
Novak was diagnosed with brain cancer a year ago.
A Korean War veteran, Novak spent fifty-two years as a journalist – a career which reached a new level of infamy with the left when he outed Valerie Plame as CIA operative in a 2003 column.
Comments
By Barney on August 18th, 2009 at 5:56 pm
These type of talking heads have hurt our country. One head is a “conservative” and one head is a “liberal”. They dumb down the issues , offer few solutions, and try to polarize the country, like Saturday night wrestlers.
By Huhhh??? on August 18th, 2009 at 6:28 pm
If the outing of a CIA agent (a crime) had occurred during a Democratic administration, much less as a leak from a President’s office, Novak would have never shut up about it.
But when HE does it to advance the agenda of Bushwar (despite the fact, I understand, he was opposed to the Iraq war) and grab a headline, it’s OK.
By Ionu on August 18th, 2009 at 6:54 pm
Could it be a good sign?
By Not Sayin', Just Sayin' on August 18th, 2009 at 8:28 pm
He was absolutely brilliant. I got turned onto politics and current events in part from watching him on Crossfire when I was a kid during the Reagan years. RIP
By yessir on August 18th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
I’m sure he never met Bobby Harrell, and I’m sure if he had met him he wouldn’t have liked him. I’m sure he would have thought that he was a fake and a liberal Republican at that. I’m sure of it. And, he wouldn’t have liked Merrill or other fakes either.
By ? on August 18th, 2009 at 9:47 pm
how could it be a good sign?
Any one of us, no matter how young or old, could find ourselves with malignant cancer.
shouldn’t this be the time we all kinda put down our swords?
By Dave T, on August 19th, 2009 at 8:07 am
I didn’t agree with him all of the time- maybe half of the time. Still, I respect his work, and I’m sorry he’s gone. He left a mark- that’s something you can’t say about talking heads, of which he was never.
By old bike dude on August 19th, 2009 at 8:39 am
Although I rarely agreed with him I always thought he was a brilliant gentleman. With the exception of the “snakehead” incident, Novak was always professional.
I believe he was used by certain folks in the Cheney administration in his role in the Valerie Plame fiasco. He owned it which was more than the other spineless bastartds involved would do.
RIP.
By lou on August 20th, 2009 at 12:32 am
one CIA agent for another and she was and a good one too so I hear from the snitches
and he went “down” ey?
By angel on August 20th, 2009 at 12:35 am
speaking of going down… has anyone eyeballed Ted Kennedy lately?
At the sis’s funeral they showed a picture of him all propped up and said he still goes out on his boat everyday but couldn’t make it to the funeral…. any locates on his where abouts or is he going down too?
I heard mention of people going down.