No Talk of Gibbs in House Democrats’ Meeting With Obama
House Democratic leaders huddled with President Barack Obama on Wednesday evening to hash out legislative priorities for the coming weeks, but one topic was notably skipped: this week’s scuffle between Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and White House spokesman Robert Gibbs.
Pelosi was among eight leading Democrats who sat down with Obama to map out the agenda for the weeks leading to the August recess. A House Democratic aide outlined the issues on tap: a financial regulatory overhaul, an extension of unemployment insurance, a war spending supplemental and a small-business lending package. Plans for a general outline of a Senate energy bill were also discussed.
“This was a very productive meeting, focused on creating more jobs, strengthening the economy, closing tax loopholes that ship jobs overseas and helping small businesses grow,” the aide said. “The discussion was about policy and the strategy of working with the president and the Senate now and through the fall to accomplish these critical priorities.”
Another Democratic source said nobody mentioned that Gibbs angered House Democrats when he suggested during a talk show appearance Sunday that Republicans could take control of the House this November. Nor did Pelosi raise grievances about Gibbs, despite having dismissed his remarks as “politically inept” during a caucus meeting Tuesday, the source said.
“Everyone clearly wanted a positive meeting,” the source said. The president told the group that they “shouldn’t be down, we are going to win” in November, the source added, and Obama made an effort “to disabuse them of any notion that he didn’t want and wouldn’t fight for a Democratic House.”