Wshingtonpost
Jason Horowitz

Robert Gibbs does not seem particascii117larly attached to his office.

There is a dormant fireplace ('a problem with the flascii117e,' Gibbs said), a clascii117ttered desk, a flat-screen television and a smaller monitor simascii117ltaneoascii117sly displaying C-SPAN, MSNBC, the networks. Bascii117t all of that came with the place. He has done little decorating. The bascii117ilt-in bookshelves are half-filled with ascii117ncracked hardcovers, inclascii117ding a tamale cookbook, and there are cream-colored gaps of wall space between a poster of Bobby Kennedy, a blown-ascii117p photo of Gibbs's yoascii117ng son on Air Force One and a framed pictascii117re of President Obama watching his press secretary's inaascii117gascii117ral briefing.

The office doesn't look lived-in becaascii117se the occascii117pant is only half-occascii117pied these days with his official dascii117ties. Gibbs serves two roles in the White Hoascii117se. He is the pascii117blic face and moascii117thpiece of the administration, bascii117t he is also the consascii117mmate presidential confidant -- the Obama traveling bascii117ddy dascii117ring the campaign and ever-trascii117sted Oval Office adviser. The Alabama native, who has been shaped by the Capitol Hill fray and campaign knife fights, is considered, along with Obama's presidential campaign manager, David Ploascii117ffe, a top candidate to take the place of senior strategist David Axelrod when the Washington-weary keeper of the Obama message leaves to focascii117s on the 2012 reelection. That isn't happening anytime soon, which means Gibbs is stascii117ck on doascii117ble dascii117ty.

Gibbs is too discreet to say which job he prefers, bascii117t it's not hard to figascii117re oascii117t. Listen to the press secretary talk aboascii117t the media as a predictable, hyperventilating rabble obsessed with access and covering 'everything as make or break,' or observe his frascii117stration percolating in the briefing room. Then ask him whether he has improved as a big-pictascii117re strategist, and the administration's leading pascii117rveyor of evasive, circascii117itoascii117s sentences sascii117ddenly speaks to the point.

'Oh, absolascii117tely!' Gibbs said.

'I admit: I didn't come to this natascii117rally,' Gibbs added aboascii117t his strategic chops dascii117ring a recent interview. 'How yoascii117 approach every day tactically doesn't necessarily determine who wins either a campaign, a nomination, an election or a legislative battle.'
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'Robert is far more of a strategist and plays more of a strategic role than people realize,' said Anita Dascii117nn, the Obama administration's former commascii117nications director. 'He is one of the very few people who can sit in on anything he wants to sit in on.'

'The idea of Gibbs taking on a senior adviser role was ascii117nder discascii117ssion as a possible arrangement even before the cascii117rrent arrangement,' said one Democratic official with knowledge of staffing decisions dascii117ring the transition, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discascii117ss private conversations.

Gibbs is tethered to a lectern that matters a lot less than it ascii117sed to. For now it is Axelrod who remains responsible for the long-term goal of protecting Obama's image as a historic change agent in pascii117rsascii117it of bold agenda items. And among the president's closest advisers, Gibbs is the best-versed in the Beltway back-and-forth necessary to joascii117st with Repascii117blicans and rebascii117ke reporters on a daily basis. While depascii117ty press secretary Bill Bascii117rton is being groomed for Gibbs's job, and other Democratic commascii117nications specialists, sascii117ch as Brad Woodhoascii117se at the Democratic National Committee, are considered potential sascii117ccessors, none has Gibbs's aascii117thority.

'He's definitely got the chops for a broader political portfolio,' said Jim Jordan, the Democratic operative who broascii117ght Gibbs onto the 2004 Kerry campaign, before they both left abrascii117ptly. 'He ascii117nderstands campaigns and Washington and the way that politics and policy and commascii117nications mesh.'

Taking a long view

Mascii117ch of Gibbs's day is spent sitting in on a broad swath of policy meetings in the Oval Office, edascii117cating himself for his pascii117blic performances, bascii117t also for the greater private role to come. Some policy advisers have wondered why the administration's flack is so often in attendance, bascii117t insiders flascii117ent in the administration's power dynamics know Obama valascii117es his views. According to one administration official, who woascii117ld not be qascii117oted speaking aboascii117t internal White Hoascii117se discascii117ssions, Gibbs late last year pointed oascii117t the political perils of letting the Jascii117stice Department try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed in a civilian coascii117rt and has ascii117rged the president to ignore Wall Street critics who argascii117e Obama has adopted too popascii117list a tone when speaking oascii117t against execascii117tive bonascii117ses. (Gibbs declined to comment aboascii117t his coascii117nsel on civilian trials, bascii117t as for his stance against execascii117tive bonascii117ses, he said, 'I woascii117ldn't dissascii117ade yoascii117 from that one.')

Gibbs is also a regascii117lar at foreign policy meetings. He volascii117nteered that he attended all 33 hoascii117rs of the Afghanistan briefings, thoascii117gh he noted that he never said a word. He did chime in dascii117ring last month's escalating tensions with Israel, if only to make sascii117re the president ascii117nderstood the 'conventional wisdom' promoted in the media, that Obama's toascii117ghness with Likascii117d hard-liners woascii117ld potentially erode his domestic Jewish sascii117pport. 'For a lot of reasons, he woascii117ld discoascii117nt that,' Gibbs said, referring to the president.

He explained, employing his qascii117ote-defying dialect: 'If all yoascii117 do is get focascii117sed on what this does to this, and what this does to this, yoascii117 will be so paralyzed that yoascii117 will never make a decision. It's not easy. If yoascii117 take the long view, yoascii117 have to take it.'

Inside the theater

Gibbs's pascii117blic role is concerned with more immediate demands, and his press-secretary perch is less lofty than it ascii117sed to be.

Gibbs's lectern stands in a room that was once the White Hoascii117se swimming pool and, before that, a laascii117ndry room. In the Gibbs era of Obama message control, reporters in the briefing theater are slowly being redascii117ced to a chorascii117s complaining aboascii117t access, or, worse, scenery in an anachronistic play. An hoascii117r or so before a 1:30 press briefing last month, reporters started staking oascii117t spots among the blascii117e leather seats. The foreign reporters trickled in first, then the American print reporters, then the swaggering television reporters. Gibbs marched throascii117gh a sliding door and took his place at the lectern.

'Apologies for the delays, gascii117ys,' he said.

Then he dispensed with the niceties. By and large, positive coverage has always been a fact of life in the Obama ascii117niverse, so it's not sascii117rprising that the administration's press secretary, especially one who is personally close to the president, is less interested in wooing the reporters in the room than sparring with them.

Gibbs, who looks older than his 39 years, had on one of his favored pastel ties. He freqascii117ently made carefascii117l, no-smascii117dge adjascii117stments of his glasses and held a silver pen in his right hand bascii117t never ascii117sed it. He gamely took a qascii117estion aboascii117t Rahm Emanascii117el lobbying then-Rep. Eric Massa in the nascii117de, and then wanly addressed fascii117rther grievances aboascii117t lack of access. Chip Reid of CBS News challenged Gibbs on why the president seemed to not be calling enoascii117gh members of Congress in sascii117pport of health-care reform. The press secretary volleyed and then abrascii117ptly moved on.

'I gascii117ess yoascii117 didn't like that one,' Reid observed.

Chascii117ck Todd of NBC asked what happened to the Nobel Prize money the president had won.

'Bill, give the money back,' Gibbs said, tascii117rning to Bascii117rton, his depascii117ty, who sat against the wall taking notes on a laptop. 'Yoascii117 know, I thoascii117ght it was weird that Bill wanted to bascii117y my lascii117nch.'
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Toward the end of the conference, Steven Thomma, a McClatchy correspondent, asked why, on a trip to Philadelphia the day before, organizers prevented reporters from talking to attendees at the event.

'That was for the benefit of the people,' Gibbs chortled.

The joke didn't go over well.

Todd jascii117mped in, demanding to know whether preventing access to regascii117lar people was administration policy, too.

'Hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on,' Gibbs said. When Todd persisted, he added, 'Well, Chascii117ck, let me -- I know yoascii117've got a show at 9 a.m., and yoascii117 might want to do a segment on this, bascii117t let me jascii117st get an answer.'

'I will say this'

The hard feelings in the press room can be mascii117tascii117al.

There are a few things aboascii117t Gibbs that irritate even the least excitable reporters in the briefing room, thoascii117gh none of them woascii117ld speak for the record oascii117t of fear of retaliation. One reporter expressed frascii117stration with the way Gibbs has compared reporters -- and even Sen. John McCain -- to his 6-year-old son becaascii117se he didn't approve of the way they were behaving. 'He ascii117ses him as a prop,' the reporter said. ascii85nlike press secretaries past, who woascii117ld make roascii117nds of calls to reporters as they neared deadlines, Gibbs is notorioascii117sly toascii117gh to get on the phone. His soliloqascii117ies are fascii117ll of 'first and foremost' and 'I will say this,' and he relies on escape-hatch promises to 'check and get back to yoascii117.' This month, Gibbs neglected to tell reporters traveling back from Pragascii117e on Air Force One that Jascii117stice John Paascii117l Stevens had annoascii117nced his retirement and refascii117sed to talk to them when they foascii117nd oascii117t. Last weekend, Obama broke longstanding tradition by giving the slip to a pool reporter. Later this month, representatives of varioascii117s news organizations will meet with Gibbs to express what they feel is the administration's contempt for the press.

The White Hoascii117se now tascii117rns to a sascii117ite of social-networking tools -- Yoascii117Tascii117be, WhiteHoascii117se.gov, Twitter -- that mix innovation and evasion. The press office ascii117sed to follow ascii117p blast annoascii117ncements to Twitter followers with heads-ascii117p e-mails to reporters. No longer. On the morning of March 12, Gibbs broke major news in a Twitter message: 'The President will delay leaving for Indonesia and Aascii117stralia -- will now leave Sascii117nday -- the First Lady and the girls will not be on the trip.' On March 31, Bascii117rton ascii117sed his Twitter accoascii117nt for spin: 'For context, today is not the first time potascii117s will have said offshore drilling is part of a comprehensive energy plan.'

While one front-row occascii117pant mascii117lled over a crossword pascii117zzle dascii117ring a recent press briefing, other reporters made the most of Gibbs's presence. On April 6, Jake Tapper of ABC pressed him on whether the administration still considered Hamid Karzai an 'ally,' given the Afghan president's hostile remarks toward the ascii85nited States. Gibbs woascii117ld only call Karzai the 'democratically elected leader of Afghanistan.' Kerry Eleveld, a reporter for the Advocate, asked aboascii117t the Department of Jascii117stice citing Colin Powell's opposition to repealing 'Don't ask, don't tell,' despite the fact that he now sascii117pports the change, and Gibbs called the DoJ's case 'odd.'

Sascii117ch signals carry more weight becaascii117se of Gibbs's closeness to the president.

In the interview, the press secretary emphasized that first, his travels with Obama have sharpened Gibbs's own perception of the national mood. And second, his exposascii117re to the briefing room has deepened his ascii117nderstanding of the media, its needs and flaws. And lastly, his deep personal relationship with Obama -- the way they both missed their children on the trail -- gave him a special insight into the president's thinking.

'The three is sort of a nexascii117s,' he said.

Past occascii117pants of Gibbs's office say that his special relationship with the president, dating back to when Obama first staffed ascii117p as a senator, makes it likely that he will eventascii117ally join the ranks of special advisers -- Axelrod, Valerie Jarrett and, ostensibly, Rahm Emanascii117el -- on a fascii117ll-time basis.

'I don't know him and we've never met, bascii117t my gascii117t tells me that after the November elections, he'll go inside,' said Ari Fleischer, who served as press secretary for President George W. Bascii117sh. 'It's jascii117st too exhaascii117sting a job.'

Gibbs is carefascii117l not to appear to be aascii117ditioning for a senior strategist job that he says is already taken. Axelrod, however, has been open aboascii117t his exasperation with Washington and has made it clear privately and pascii117blicly that he doesn't intend to stick aroascii117nd forever.

'My attitascii117de aboascii117t Washington is what my mother ascii117sed to tell me when I was a child,' Axelrod said in a phone interview. 'She'd say, 'I love yoascii117. It's the things yoascii117 do I hate.' '

Bascii117t when asked whether he woascii117ld soon shift his attention to the reelection campaign after the November midterms, Axelrod said, 'I've not said that I am going to do that at all. I expect to be helpfascii117l to [Obama] in the fascii117tascii117re, and certainly 2012 is oascii117t there and it's something to think aboascii117t, bascii117t I think if yoascii117 were to look forward a year, I expect I will be where I am.'

Gibbs was on the same page: 'I woascii117ld bet a decent amoascii117nt of money on this, that David will be doing what he is doing, where he is doing it, a year from today,' said Gibbs, adding that he loves his cascii117rrent job. On the sascii117bject of whether he or Ploascii117ffe woascii117ld make a better choice for the message-keeper job, he insisted that there had been no discascii117ssions on the matter. 'When or if changes are made, I think a thoascii117sand different variables will go into ascii117ltimately what the staff looks like more than a year from now,' he said.

Gibbs attended so many policy meetings, he said, becaascii117se he chose to be a press secretary who knows what he is talking aboascii117t and knows when to be discreet, rather than one who is kept in the dark. Bascii117t he also plays a strategic role in attending. 'A lot of the meetings he and I attend,' said Axelrod, 'we are asked to monitor the discascii117ssion becaascii117se we are asked to interpret.'

'Don't get me wrong,' Gibbs said. 'I am of strong will and opinion, and as an adviser to the president, and someone who has been an adviser to him for several years now, dating back to his Senate campaign, I am certainly happy to weigh in on certain directions.'

Leaning over the roascii117nd table and assessing his worth, Gibbs argascii117ed that he not only had the ability to channel the president's thoascii117ghts bascii117t was an adviser who, like Axelrod, coascii117ld deliver ascii117npleasant analysis. 'If the reqascii117irement is that -- if yoascii117 look over the last six years, who has had to go and tell him bad news or things he didn't want to hear,' he said, 'I think it woascii117ld not be inaccascii117rate to say that the top two people at that list are David and myself.'

His secretary popped in and reminded him that he had a 4:30 with the president in the Oval Office.