Syndicated columnist and author Walter E. Williams, known for his defense of free-market capitalism and criticism of the welfare state, has died, drawing expressions of mourning from across the conservative spectrum.
The 84-year-old John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University and an occasional guest host for Rush Limbaugh on his daily radio show died Wednesday morning, according to fellow George Mason economics professor Don Boudreaux.
A cause of death was not made public, however, Boudreaux said Williams taught his regular class on Tuesday.
Conservative author and radio show host Mark Levin called the news a ''punch in the gut.''
''Walter had an enormous influence on me, from the time I was 13-years old; he was my first guest on 'Life, Liberty & Levin,''' Levin wrote on Twitter.
Born into a single-parent family in 1930s Philadelphia, Williams worked as a cab driver before he earned his doctorate in economics from UCLA at 36. He was a childhood neighbor of Bill Cosby and reportedly knew the people the comedian used to develop the characters Fat Albert and Old Weird Harold.
Williams joined the faculty as an economics professor at Temple in 1973 and remained until 1980, when he moved to George Mason. He is the author of 11 books, his first in 1982, ''The State Against Blacks,'' and his most recent five years ago, ''American Contempt for Liberty.''
He began writing his syndicated column for Heritage Features Syndicate, which merged with Creators Syndicate, and has written articles for The American Spectator, Newsweek, Reason and The Wall Street Journal.
Among the tributes came from Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who lauded Williams for his intellect.
''Very sad news,'' Cruz wrote on Twitter. ''Walter Williams was legendary. He was brilliant, incisive, witty, and profound. I grew up reading him, and he was a ferocious defender of free markets and a powerful explainer of the virtues of Liberty.''
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