"watch What You Say"

Remember when Bush Press Secretary Ari Fleischer was slammed for supposedly urging Americans to watch what they say? (He didn't of course - but that's taken a long time to be recognized.)

Now here's Robert Gibbs delivering the warning for real.

“I think it is probably important for anybody involved in this debate to be exceedingly careful with the way in which they’ve decided to describe different aspects of this impending confirmation."

Question: why? Why be more careful with this nomination than with those of Miguel Estrada or Robert Bork - never mind Clarence Thomas? On what basis does Gibbs single out this nomination as more sensitive than others, this debate as demanding more care than other debates?