Robert Novak, Conservative Columnist, Dies at 78

By Amanda Pendolino on August 18th, 2009

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Robert D. Novak, an influential columnist and panelist on TV news-discussion shows, died today at his home in Washington of a brain tumor first diagnosed just over a year ago. He was 78.

According to The Washington Post, Novak’s syndicated column “Inside Report“ covered such topics as Presidential politics, Fiscal policy and the inside happenings of the political parties. He shared the column with the late Rowland Evans for thirty years, and was known for exposing high-level leaks in Washington and bringing politicians under intense scrutiny.

In 2003, Novak famously identified CIA operative Valerie Plame, whose husband, former U.S. ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, announced to the public that the Bush White House had knowingly altered intelligence that Iraq tried to obtain uranium from Africa. As a result of Novak’s column, aide Scooter Libby was convicted for perjury and obstruction of justice after a federal investigation into the leak.

While Novak questioned Bush and called the US invasion into Iraq “unjustified,” he spent most of career championing conservative ideals. He was a strong advocate of supply-side economics, the belief that tax cuts will strengthen the economy as money trickles down and fosters prosperity for everyone involved. He helped transform the idea from a lesser-known theory to the heart Ronald Reagan’s economic policy.

Novak worked as a congressional reporter for the Associated Press and the Wall Street Journal before teaming up with Evans. ”Inside Report” ran in almost 300 papers across the country.