Today's press briefing: Gibbs calls for 'orderly transition' in Egypt

WH spokesman Robert Gibbs today called for an “orderly transition” in Egypt, and “meaningful negotiations” with a broad swath of the Egyptian people “including the opposition.”  Gibbs also touted Obama’s Cairo speech.  He also called for “free and fair elections” and stated that the United States does not determine who’s on the ballot. Gibbs also said the people around the world need to see “action” from the Egyptian government.

Gibbs said that an orderly transition must include a process of negotiations including political opposition, it would have to address the freedoms that the people of Egypt seek, and “many of the things that we’ve outlined over the past few days need to be addressed.”  He said “this is not about appointments, it is about actions,” suggesting that Mubarak’s moves over the weekend to install a new parliament and a vice president were not enough.

The Tatler fears that this White House is considering a tilt toward Mohamed ElBaradei, the Nobel laureate, to have a major role in this “orderly transition.”  That would be grave error.  Yasser Arafat was also a Nobel laureate, along with his lifetime career as one of the world’s most successful terrorist leaders.