Robert Gibbs is one of those guys who has a way of delivering a left hook straight to the jaw while speaking softly with a wide smile. He's in rare
May 5, 2010

Robert Gibbs is one of those guys who has a way of delivering a left hook straight to the jaw while speaking softly with a wide smile. He's in rare form here, in response to FOX News' Wendell Goler's wide-eyed question about whether the oil disaster in the Gulf is Obama's Katrina.

Q As for critics who are calling this your Katrina, is there -- President Obama’s Katrina --

MR. GIBBS: Can I say this -- I watched FOX yesterday.

Q I really didn’t want you to go there. (Laughter.)

MR. GIBBS: But you sort of -- you opened both the double doors and voila, here I am. (Laughter.)

Q But it wasn’t just FOX calling this your Katrina.

MR. GIBBS: No, no, but FOX had the very special and unique interview with Michael Brown -- you opened it and I had to do it -- who for those who weren’t let in on the big secret, Mr. Brown, FEMA Director Brown under Katrina, intimated on FOX, and it wasn’t -- I will editorially say, didn’t appear to be pushed back on real hard -- that this spill was leaked on purpose in order for us to walk back our environmental and drilling decisions, and that the leak that we did on purpose got out of control and now is too big to contain.

So suffice to say, Wendell --

Q What is his attribution? What is his -- Mr. Brown’s attribution?

MR. GIBBS: I can only wish that the network that you work for had asked that prior to interviewing him yesterday.

Q But reporters in here asked that.

MR. GIBBS: Well, you should --

Q So I’m asking you --

MR. GIBBS: You should call headquarters, my friend, and --

Q I’m asking you --

MR. GIBBS: -- ask for somebody who makes the decisions to put people like that -- because I got to tell you, Wendell, I’m not entirely sure that a factual answer that I might give to any one of your questions is going to change the notion that your network put out the former FEMA director to make an accusation that the well had been purposely set off in order to change an offshore drilling decision.

Q Nor would that affect the reporting I do.

MR. GIBBS: I didn’t intimate that it did. Again, I would -- you and Major should --

Q If we can, let’s move on from it.

MR. GIBBS: You could get on a conference call and maybe do some work. Go ahead.

While I'm certain it was lost on the hapless Wendell Goler, it was a delicious moment for me. In one short, clipped response Gibbs let everyone in the room know exactly how stupid those FOX News reporters are, with a crinkly little grin and a wink. Well done.

(h/t Daily Kos)

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