Longtime political reporter and syndicated columnist Robert Novak died on Tuesday at age 78 following a year-long battle with brain cancer. What made Novak a Washington institution? Why could he get scoops that no one else got? How was able to transition so well from the print world to cable television? How much political influence did he have? And was he really the curmudgeon he appeared to be on TV? We ask Weekly Standard Executive Editor and Fox News Channel commentator Fred Barnes, a friend of Novak’s for more than 35 years.
