Robert Gibbs made a splash yesterday at his first official press briefing as White House Spokesman, managing to make odd references to Brazilian soccer while outing confidential sources and generally making display of his ham-handed tactics and smarmy, arrogant style.
In a triumph for incompetence and unprofessionalism, two themes that I expect to play a large part in the Obama administration, Gibbs had an uncomfortable exchange that was covered by the Washington Times, but apparently more or less ignored by the mainstream media reporters at the briefing.
Over the last eight years we have seen excellence in communication from the White House from Tony Snow, betrayal by Scott McClellan, and smooth, agendaless capitulation from Dana Perino. Robert Gibb's rank incompetence is something new. I wonder how long it will be before even the mainstream media has had enough of his condescending, didactic style?
Here's a nice exchange from the Washington Times, when Gibbs was trying to shut the press up with their annoying questions about why His Highness Obama I is already breaking promises of transparency:
"Do you know," the reporter followed, "that you've used ... one of those senior officials' first names several times in this briefing?" A very long pause ensued.
"I do," the spokesman said, his cornflower-colored tie suddenly looking a bit too tight. "Are we allowed to repeat that name?" Mr. Gibbs answered by citing as precedent of Brazilian soccer stars being known only by a single name - sure to one day be a classic White House non-answer.
Then it got uglier.
"How is it transparent," another reporter asked, "when you control the only image of the re-swearing - there's nobody in there but four print reporters, there's no stills, there's no television? And the only recording that comes out, as I understand it, is one that a reporter made, not one that the White House supplied."
How is it possible that members of the press are so easily roped in by these guys? No matter how much Obama and his staff abuse the press we can probably expect four years of fawning coverage in the media.
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