NEW YORK (AP) — Robert B. Barnett, a powerhouse Washington attorney who became a fixture in the political and publishing worlds as the literary representative for Barack and Michelle Obama, Bill and Hillary Clinton and dozens of other leaders, has died at age 79.

One of Barnett's partners at Williams & Connolly, Michael F. O'Connor, told The Associated Press that he died Thursday night at Sibley Memorial Hospital of an “undisclosed illness.” Additional details were not immediately available.

“He was a dear friend, a trusted advisor, and a wise, faithful, and steadfast guide to the publishing and entertainment worlds,” the Clintons said in a statement Friday.

A stocky, raspy-voiced man with tortoiseshell glasses, antique cuff links and a knack for being both forthright and discrete, Bob

See Full Page