In defense of the new alleged doosh

Robert Gibbs is the new White House Press Secretary. No news in that statement. But I want to step forward and say that I think he's the smartest person to hold that job in quite a while. Dana Perino was a Barbie doll. Scott McClellan was always out of his proper depth. Ari Fleischer was the single most unwatchable prick in the history of the gig. Even the Clinton picks were mostly off the mark (although I always had a crush on Mike McCurry). Gibbs, however, seems like a guy tough as nails and able to talk on any subject as the situation merits. That's not to say that he's not taking some shots - The Daily Show was especially harsh this week and the impossible dooshiness of ABC's Jake Tapper veered into a undeserved tiff with the Gibber. The news networks are carrying his pressers live daily and it's like news crack for those with a pipe. Can you imagine being on point to answer questions in these anarchic days? Still, I see great things coming from the podium these days. Just needed to say it. Go Gibber.

For those that are unaware of our daily life, Sarah's in Africa. As a result, Maya's a social experiment that I can't quite yet gauge. We're doing loads of playdates/dinners with friends, and Maya starts another ballet class tomorrow morning. Distracting interactions rock. And we're using Skype to keep in touch across the continents. But with only the Pro Bowl scheduled as an utterly empty football snack this Sunday, we'll be doing lots of home improvement projects in the near term to fill the gap in proper parent interaction. Or maybe I'll just buy Maya a BB gun. Given how much the neighbor dogs (on BOTH sides) are yapping, I think it will be the best way to multi-task.

Hope your own press secretaries have plumped up briefing books today. Rock on.

"Where's that Gannon guy - sure could use one of them questions..."

Dubya just finished the strangest news conference I've seen in many moons. Part of it had to be that the vast field of tough problems and unbelievable missteps that naturally lead to a bazillion snarky White House Press Corps questions. But he's flubbin' and stumblin' more than ever. Including a repeated assertion about Iran's alleged link to weapons found in Iraq being bad even if the Iranian government didn't know about it. And an outright refusal to respond to my earlier planted question about Rove/Fleischer/Armitage's leaking of Valerie Plame's name. I look forward to how the chattering class battles over this moment in the life of the Administration. I think it's a low point. Let me know if you disagree.

For those looking up Maya's progress, it's been a solidish week of flu featuring a few days of hearty barfing. She dealt damn well considering everything, we did approximately 37 loads of laundry, the house got a bit manky, but we've dosed it all in kerosene so it's all just a sensory memory now. More importantly, Maya's back to about 97%. Good thing, too. Tomorrow nite we're heading back to San Francisco for a few days. Should be lovely to revisit some short-lived-but-loved haunts and see some cherished folk. Please check back for pics.

Hope your own follow-ups are unavoidable today. Rock on.