Columnist Robert Novak retired this week after being diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Novak was known for his scoops and inside sources during his 45-year career as a syndicated columnist. Whether you thought he was a crony for conservatives or a or an unmatched political reporter, most would agree the lifelong journalist never shied away from causing a stir.

Though most known for outing former CIA operative Valerie Plame and penning the column that labeled 1972 Democratic presidential candidate George McGovern as the candidate for “abortion, amnesty and acid,” Novak also criticized the Bush Administration’s “logic” leading up to the Iraq War.

Novak himself admits in his book, aptly titled Prince of Darkness, that his gig wasn’t conducive to making friends, but we were still surprised to be so hard-pressed to find kind words in response to the conservative columnist’s “dire” diagnosis—especially after the outpouring of support that came from all sides of the political spectrum in the wake of veteran newsman Tim Russert’s unexpected death.

House Minority Whip Roy Blunt was one of the few public figures to send his condolences publicly.

“Bob Novak doesn’t read stories in the paper, he breaks them. And over the last 25 election seasons, his track record of reporting and commenting on the American political landscape has never failed to demonstrate keen insight and a peerless political acumen.”

Here’s a flashback to a 1986 episode of “Crossfire” in which Novak and musician Frank Zappa go head to head on the topic of censorship.

[Hat Tips: Gawker and P+P's own Brian Frank]