the media elite were perched on the same wire , Bob would land on the opposite wire and gleefully squawk at them . Bob was an ideologue more than a partisan . One of the many sources of tension between us was the fact that I am a partisan Democrat who believes that , from time to time , my personal ideological agenda must take a backseat to advancing a broader progressive agenda carried by my party . Not Bob . He was a conservative first , last and always , and when he felt the Republican Party had strayed from his hard-core anti-tax , anti-government ideology he would hammer the GOP with the same withering ridicule he usually dispensed to Democrats . Bob was deeply skeptical of authority . He was a lowly lieutenant in the United States Army , and he instinctively distrusted big shots -- a rarity in a town that is often dazzled by rank . For a guy who said he preferred business to government , he was not afraid to show his contempt for network executives with whom he disagreed . Bob had a remarkable work ethic . In the predawn hours after the
Editor 's note : Paul Begala , a Democratic strategist and CNN political contributor , was a political consultant for Bill Clinton 's presidential campaign in 1992 and was counselor to Clinton in the White House . He was a co-host of `` Crossfire '' on CNN with Robert Novak from 2002 to 2005 . Paul Begala says he admired Robert Novak for his skepticism about authority , work ethic and faith in his beliefs . -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- In our innumerable debates , I delighted in calling Bob Novak `` the finest mind of the 12th century . '' One time , though , he scowled and growled , `` I prefer the 15th century . Spanish Inquisition . Those were the days . '' Novak left this world on Tuesday , but he also left his mark . Needless to say I disagreed with Bob about virtually every political issue , and sometimes our on-air debates continued as profanity-laced shouting matches after the show ended . Despite our profound differences , though , we were friends . Here 's why : Bob was an iconoclast . He loved poking conventional wisdom in the eye . If all