Robert Gibbs Leaving White House

Robert Gibbs is leaving the White House after serving as press secretary for two years.

"It's true," the Obama adviser confirmed to CBS News.

Gibbs will depart in February, and he plans to become an outside political adviser to President Obama. He will also give private sector speeches, according to the Associated Press.

No replacement has been named.

"He's had a six-year stretch now where basically he's been going 24/7 with relatively modest pay. I think it's natural for someone like Robert to want to step back for a second to reflect, retool and that, as a consequence, brings about both challenges and opportunities for the White House," President Obama told the New York Times.

On Tuesday, the Washington Post reported that Gibbs was contemplating leaving the administration to create a private consulting business as part of Obama's 2012 reelection campaign.