WASHINGTON - Two of the top qualities Robert Gibbs brings to the job of White House press secretary aren't found on his résumé: He won't flinch at telling it like it is to the next president or telling it like he thinks it ought to be to the media.
Gibbs, named to the post Saturday, has been at the side of President-elect Barack Obama since his Senate campaign in 2004. A Southerner and tough fighter, Gibbs has been a passionate defender of Obama who can virtually channel the Illinois senator's thoughts.
During the presidential campaign, Gibbs, 37, served as communications director and was among the few who could frankly tell Obama what needed to improve. He also didn't hesitate to tell the media when he thought they got it wrong and fiercely guarded Obama's image.
One critic called Gibbs "the bland face of brazenness" when he said Obama's decision to resign from his church amid the controversy over the Rev. Jeremiah Wright was "a deeply personal decision, not a political decision."
Others were surprised when he called Fox News' Bill O'Reilly a "bully" and asked Sean Hannity, "Are you anti-Semitic?" in response to the TV commentator's questions about Obama's relationship to William Ayers, a 1960s radical.
A former roommate who worked with Gibbs on Capitol Hill said Gibbs has been a successful press secretary because he combines top-notch political skills with a quick wit.
"That's the reason the Washington press corps is going to relate well to him," that roommate, Shar Hendrick, said recently.
Also Saturday, Obama reached outside his inner circle to name Ellen Moran to the post of White House communications director. Moran, the executive director of the group EMILY's List, was an active supporter of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton during the Democratic presidential primary season. Moran will join a team of longtime close advisers who will work with Obama on a daily basis.
