Rachel Sklar offered up an interesting take on the comparison, in the wake of Tapper's “pissing” match last with WH flak Robert Gibbs. (Tapper pretty much lectured Gibbs following a rather mundane exchange between the two. Y'know, just like reporters used to lecture Ari Fleischer back in February 2001.....)

According to Sklar, the much-discussed scuffle caused quite a tizzy inside the press room.

Tapper won that point—we've seen just how pertinent it is to Cabinet nominees that they pay their taxes—but with it came something else: the title of Briefing Room Badass.

And then came the inevitable comparison with NBC's David Gregory. Reported Sklar:

No less than three separate Washington political reporters spontaneously compared him to Gregory, who made his name being a thorn in the side of various White House press secretaries.

Interesting point. But here's where the lack of context comes in within the WH press room. The Tapper/Gibbs exchange took place during the third week of the Obama administration. David Gregory however, did not make a name for himself as a thorn in the side of the Bush White House until like four years after Bush was sworn into office.

Interesting, right? The WH press corps is all atwitter just days into the Democratic term over who's going to be the official press room “Badass” during the Democratic administration. But that's something nobody in the same press room even thought about becoming until 50 months into Bush's tenure.

No double standard there, right?

In fact, get this. During the first 100 days of the Bush White House back in 2001, Gregory, rather than being a pitbull, was honored by the right-wing Media Research Center as the Best White House Correspondent for Gregory's pro-Bush coverage.