Rahm Emanuel - It's Official - Chief of Staff!

[DemoRabbit]

:)

If you need to know who he is:

From Wiki:

Rahm Emanuel (born November 29, 1959) is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 2003, representing Illinois's 5th congressional district, which covers much of the north side of Chicago and parts of suburban Cook County.
Emanuel was chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee for the 2006 elections. After the Democratic Party regained control of the House, he was elected as the next chairman of the Democratic Caucus. He is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House, behind Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Leader Steny Hoyer and Whip Jim Clyburn.
Emanuel is noted for his strong style and his fundraising prowess.<1> He is the co-author, with current Democratic Leadership Council President Bruce Reed, of the 2006 book, The Plan: Big Ideas for America. He is a member of the New Democrat Coalition. On November 5, 2008, he was offered and accepted the position of Chief of Staff in the Obama administration

[Name removed]

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[Chimichurri]

4. Sigh.

[Horse with no Name]

25. Yep.

:(

[greguganus]

5. That sucks.

:puke:

[harun]

45. Yes it does (n/t)

[Qutzupalotl]

63. He can do less damage in the WH than in the HR.

:shrug:

[NikolaC]

90. You Know

The more I think about it, the more I believe you are right :).

[Dhalgren]

6. Hey, everyone! Meet Barack Obama!

And the Honeymoon begins...

[Mari333]

8. bringing the troops home will become more difficult now....n/t

[Dhalgren]

11. With this pick as CoS

I am wondering if he ever really intended to... :(

[LSK]

16. why???????????

[Robbien]

24. Rahm is a big supporter of AIPAC

War on Terror is something he strongly supports.

[Virginia Dare]

37. Obama has been pretty upfront about his desire to continue that..

he believes there are extremists in Afghanistan and Pakistan that need to be dealt with.

[KakistocracyHater]

91. Pakistan just bought alot of weapons

from 'private' weapons makers too. I've long thought that Pakistan is Iraq for the twenty tens, hope I'm wrong. New Holland tractors & coal mining equipment would quickly & easily make those "impassible mountain roads" passible & fully paved highways. Same with laying down plumbing/sewage pipes-look at the backhoes available, those drought-tolerant poppies would be replaced with wheat & other equally valuable & LEGAL crops. Why they didn't do this in 2003, 04, 05, 06, 07 is beyond me, unless they truly didn't WANT to help...

[Virginia Dare]

100. Pakistan IMO was the one to deal with post 9/11...

there were issues there that were never dealt with properly, and as a result the mess has just grown. Obama understands this well from what I can ascertain. I think he'll deal with it.

[leftchick]

64. I just pointed that out, AIPAC=WoT and Iran Strike

He is a terrible choice. Is it a big fucking secret or something because my post was deleted??

:(

[KakistocracyHater]

110. LOVE your Jesus pic

There are peace-time uses for weapons technology, for instance reloading "Daisy Cutter bombs" with fire-retardent foam/gel would help in putting out forest fires
while still selling for the idiot corp. I remember seeing a pic of Obama at some aipac event which really gives me grave doubts. Purging the gov of loyal bushies will cause a ruckus that whole idiotic bygones crap-while really if not done they'll just continue their wrecking habits.

[katty]

84. yes, very big supporter of AIPAC - very tough player

[JerseygirlCT]

97. Why would anyone think that because of his positions, suddenly

Obama's positions are going to change?

Obama will be the president. Emmanuel will be the Chief of Staff. I don't think there will be any confusion whatsoever in that WH about who is in charge.

[Dhalgren]

104. Because Obama would not pick a CoS

who was in disagreement with his basic policies. It would be stupid of Obama to do this. So, we have to assume that Emanuel shares Obama's views - remember Obama is a very big supporter of the WoT and is a huge AIPAC warrior. so we shouldn't be surprised that Obama would pick a DLCer like Emanuel. It just shows you the direction Obama is headed and it isn't one I like...

[katty]

85. probably

[TexasObserver]

7. It's a good choice. He'll serve Obama well.

Competence, not ideology.

Yeah, he's got some stank on him, but so does anyone with any skills.

Rahm will be effective, and will help Obama craft his legislative strategies.

[loudsue]

69. I hope Obama wins him over to the Light.

He's every bit as bad as LIEberman in his right-leaning ways. Maybe Obama will teach him about life.

[madfloridian]

9. It tells a lot about where we will be going as a party now.

:shrug:

[EFerrari]

18. Yeah, but we pretty much knew that already, didn't we?

I can't stand this man. Isn't he one of the ones who wanted to fire Howard Dean, mad?

[Individualist]

21. He is one of those.

DLC detests progressives; they love wars and corporations.

[Horse with no Name]

26. He is the one that tried to take all the credit for the 2006 victories

and leave Dean out in the cold. We knew that.
Sigh.

[EFerrari]

27. Obama needs a coalition. Maybe that's what he's building.

I'm not going to freak out. Yet. lol

[Horse with no Name]

28. Yeah but I sure would have liked Obama to throw the progressive community a bone

here. Emmanuel is so....slimy. Yecchhh.

[Virginia Dare]

38. He's got plenty more bones, don't give up yet...n/t

[RufusTFirefly]

61. The endorsement from the Clintons obviously had strings attached

It would've been naive to assume otherwise, I'm afraid.
I just wish Obama had appointed Emanuel to head FEMA instead. I'm sure he would've done a heckuva job.

[EFerrari]

62. Please! We're due for an earthquake!

:rofl:

[MissDeeds]

58. I can't stand him

And he's not someone I would trust. BO said in his speech last night that he would make mistakes. Ok, this is one.

[alarimer]

41. Which is why I no longer consider myself part of it.

War-mongering is what Republicans do (and I guess DINOs like Rahm).

[katty]

86. yes, he can and does wield alot of power-proven player

[dysfunctional press]

10. well...at least it gets a dlc jackass out of congress.

:shrug:

unfortunately it gives him total access to the president's ear.

[Greyhound]

12. Are they old friends or something?

I admit I'm completely mystified on this one...

[ProfessorGAC]

105. They're Out Of The Same Training Ground

Chicago politics. They've known one another for a long time.

But, btw, Emmanuel will do what Obama says to do, not the other way around.
The Professor

[greguganus]

13. At least Pelosi won't get her wish of Rahm taking Obama's place in the Senate

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/06/09/pelosi-pushing-for-rahm-e_n_106051.html

[madfloridian]

14. He told candidates to go right on immigration and Iraq...

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1646

His own words.

[notadmblnd]

15. So he's going to be Obama's handler?

That glimmer of hope I was seeing just dimmed a little.

[LSK]

17. nobody can handle him, you obviously do not know Obama

[notadmblnd]

20. Time will tell.

and you're right. I've never met the man. I did however believe what he said. But choosing as his COS someone that is bought and paid for by corporations, diminishes my hope that something will be done to improve the working mans plight of the last 8 years.

[bdamomma]

102. Obama is his own boss, give Obama a chance.

It is his choice.

[Mari333]

19. sigh, ditto. n/t

[Virginia Dare]

40. No, more like the task master...

of course every COS has a different relationship with his President, so it remains to be seen.

[Gore1FL]

22. Team of Rivals

That was promised.

There will be people of many views, left right, and center) in the Obama White House, but we know where "the buck stops."

The last thing I'd want to see is him make the same mistake Bush and the GOP did by creating an advisory board of group think.

Emanual is competent.

[Pastiche423]

59. The only thing Emanual is competent in is

warmongering and making the corporations happy.

Extremely poor choice for Obama.

Who's next? Holy joe?

:thumbsdown:

[tigereye]

103. I dunno, he got a lot of Dems elected last time around...

I think Obama wants someone who's a tough manager and won't be a leak machine, don't you think?

[Dhalgren]

106. Howard Dean was much more responsible for the

success of the 2006 than was Emanuel. Emanuel being the CoS means the Obama WH is just business as usual. What's that line from that Who song? Oh yeah...

[tigereye]

115. I love how we hate DLC-types no matter their skill level

actually, I think Emmanuel seems a bit old-school for the Obama admin, but he's a tough cookie.

[Pastiche423]

112. WTF are you talking about?

What Dems did he get elected and how?

[tigereye]

114. he engineered the 2006 House take back as I recall -

no need to swear....

[Pastiche423]

116. No, he did not

It was Howard Dean's 50 state strategy that did.

[tigereye]

117. isn't it possible both could have played a role?

:shrug: Dean is very cool, but sometimes our attack dogs have some effect as well.


Why can't we use all of the tools in the Dem toolkit?

[Pastiche423]

118. Do tyou even know what Dean's position is?

[tigereye]

119. no, actually I don't

[Pastiche423]

120. Good grief!

Well, that sure explains a lot. You don't even know wtf you are talking about.

:rofl:

[theboss]

109. And winning elections

He's really good at that.

[Pastiche423]

111. What elections did he win?

[Leopolds Ghost]

23. This probably means Dean is out, people. And anti-New Deal Summers is in.

And Rubin who "brought America out of the old industrial mindset
and into a post-industrial economy" by exporting all the manufacturing
jobs that make the junk those "green yuppies" buy, including their
plastic hybrid SUVs.

[Virginia Dare]

36. Obama claims old style politics are out, we'll see what he does..

the old assumptions may not hold.

[Name removed]

29. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[HamdenRice]

30. First really bad decision of the Obama administration

I just wrote this in another thread:

The main power of the chief of staff is that he/she controls access to the president. That often also means that the CoS controls the way information flows to the president and the way issues and decisions are framed -- options already narrowed by the time they get to the president's office.

It is very easy for the president to find himself inside a bubble, even one who is not an idiot, like Bush, predisposed to being a bubble boy.

A stupid president or figure head president (Reagan comes to mind) needs a highly restrictive, controlling CoS. (Cheney and Cheney's staff effectively took over many of Bush's CoS functions.)

A smart president needs one who may be strong but is unobtrusive on policy. A CoS's policy preferences should be invisible to the president. Unfortunately, Emanuel has very strong policy preferences in international relations and he could impose them through control of access to information and other staff.

Obama does not need an Emanuel type CoS. He needs one who will facilitate, not restrict, the president's access to other staff, the other political centers of power (especially Congress) and the outside world.

[Kitty Herder]

31. Well said.

This does not bode well.

[cobalt1999]

I disagree.

It's easier to live in a bubble when you surround yourself with same thinking "yes-men". Emanuel is tough, knowledgeable, will have no learning curve, and depending on the makeup of the rest of the staff will provide a needed different viewpoint.

[HamdenRice]

34. You're actually making my point for me

When you wrote, that you don't think the president should be surrounded by "same thinking 'yes-men'", I assume that's because you believe the president should receive a wide variety and diversity of opinions.

That's exactly why the CoS should be neutral. That is the position that provides the most opportunity for a person with strong opinions to limit the access of the president to other opinions. I certainly never suggested that the president needs to be surrounded by yes men; only that the CoS of all positions needs to be mostly policy neutral.

Above all, the Obama administration needs a massive rethink on Iraq, Israel, the Palestinian problem, the middle east in general, and the so called "war on terror," and I don't trust Emanuel to provide a free flow of information, opinions, competing staff, congressional leaders, and foreign opinion on those particular issues.

[cobalt1999]

35. I don't believe any CoS can be truly neutral; especially one who was a politician.

While you don't trust him to provide a free flow of information, and it is a valid concern, I think the fact he will be effective working with congress from day one out-weighs that concern. JMHO.

[harun]

46. That guy supports Bush's position on Iraq, nuff said (n/t)

[Virginia Dare]

44. Who would be a good "neutral" choice in your estimation..

it seems like a lot of the resistance to him here is because he's not progressive enough. I think Obama probably chose him because of his personal qualities and political abilities, not necessarily for his ideology. I also think he was sending a message to the republicans because they hate him intensely. The message being, we're willing to work with you, but we're not pandering to you, so don't get any crazy ideas.

[harun]

47. "The Republicans hate him intensely"

Why didn't you say so. I like him a lot more now. (and I am not kidding or being sarcastic :-)

[HamdenRice]

51. I think I'm trying to make a slightly different point

I realize some people are saying Emanuel is not progressive enough. In fact, I don't want to have to care about the political views of the CoS, other than that they mostly don't come into the picture. I'm not making that argument. I am saying that on the central cluster of issues Obama will face -- the "war on terror," military spending, Iraq, Israel/Palestine, the middle east -- Emanuel has a fixed, rigid set of ideas that makes me think he will not provide a free flow of information or a full set of options to the president.

I also don't think the CoS needs to have so much experience/contacts with Congress. That's the job of the White House political director, who counts heads, coordinates with the Speaker and Senate Majority Leader on the management and drafting and traffic control of legislation, and eventually tells the president who in Congress needs to be called, arm twisted, "bribed" with pork, or subjected to "the Johnson Treatment."

The CoS is concerned primarily with scheduling (a shockingly difficult task when you're talking about allocating face time with the POTUS), paper flow, lines of authority and decision-making, and above all, managing/winnowing millions pages of information and legislation a day down to something the president, a single man, can read, and check off his decisions on, each day.

Someone, like Emanuel, whose ideas are fixed in stone and pretty much on the extreme ends of the policy debate on an important cluster of issues is not the guy to be trusted to winnow down millions of pages of information, intelligence and opinion on Iraq/Iran/Israel/Palestine/Pakistan/W-on-T to a couple of five page memos and decision trees.

I am extremely worried about what won't get into President Obama's policy option papers if Emanuel is CoS.

Other than that, I think a lot of people could do a good job at this. I'm not saying Emanuel isn't progressive enough; I'm saying he's probably the single worst choice for the job.

It seems like the campaign staff handled exactly this job extremely well. A few people have mentioned Howard Dean, who would be a superb choice, but I'm not sure he's interested, but given what he did with the party, it's clear he has the skill set required.

[Marr]

57. Oh I think it's a message alright. But not the one you describe.

Frankly, I think it's a message to establishment Republicans, Democrats, Wall Street, etc., that he intends to embrace the corporate end of the party and not the grassroots. Call me cynical.

[katty]

89. yes, that message is quite clear

looking beyond the 'inspirational' trappings.

[Joe Fields]

33. well said. thank you.

[Marr]

56. Couldn't agree more.

Putting a DLC hack like Rahm Emanuel *anywhere* in the administration would be a bad sign, but as Chief of Staff it's particularly troublesome. He's not suited to the task.

Also, the timing really bothers me. It seems like a preemptive declaration to the establishment that they shouldn't worry, that all this talk about change is just talk.

[leeann1317]

70. How have so many people lost so much confidence in Obama so quickly? It's ridiculous!

[HamdenRice]

71. I have not lost faith in Obama

I just think this is a terrible, but correctable decision. When Obama realizes that Emanuel is editing the options in position papers, I predict an ambassadorship for Emanuel to Equitorial Guinea, Paraguay, Laos or Estonia.

[leeann1317]

73. You've lost confidence in his judgment ()

[Parker CA]

32. MSNBC just said this has not yet been confirmed.

[alarimer]

39. I hate that guy.

I can only hope that he does less damage there than in the House but somehow I doubt.

[bdamomma]

42. isn't there other people who could be appointed for Chief of Staff

just asking.

Well we elected a President I guess the rest is up to President Elect Obama to make his own decision who should be in his cabinet.

[KG]

43. well, so much for the the 'change' thing...

ya'll weren't really falling for that boloney were ya?

[Lilith Velkor]

60. Yes they did

Some asshat in GD:P was celebrating "victory over Clintonism!!11!"

...and then abruptly STFU when it got this very news item. :rofl:

[Egalitariat]

48. Does it matter? What does a Chief of Staff do?

[HamdenRice]

55. It's very, very important

see posts 30, 34 and 51 for a description of the job. One of the main things is deciding who (even up to cabinet level) gets to see or talk on the telephone with the president.

You have to go through the CoS to get to the president. He's the gatekeeper, and the editor of information, memos and intelligence that flows to the Oval Office.

[Greyhound]

66. Probably the single most important job in the White House.

The Chief of Staff has nearly absolute control over what the President does and more importantly who/what he hears. Nobody talks to the President without going through the Chief of Staff.

Very disturbing.

[katty]

87. It sure is and Rahm likes control-his career is evidence of that

[girl gone mad]

49. That's a shame.

I hope it's just a token and not a sign of things to come.

[leftofthedial]

50. They'll need a whole new Executive Office Building

just to house the DLC flunkies

Hope was nice while it lasted.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

107. I thought you were going to say

just to house Rahm's ego.

[NikolaC]

52. Please Tell Me That This Is A Joke

or that it has not be completely confirmed. *sigh* Oh well...

[MJkcj]

53. This confuses me

why would his first decision be one to appoint someone who is againsst so many of the things that barak has spoken about over and over? There must be more to this than we know.

[FLAprogressive]

54. I can only hope that this is President-Elect Barack Obama's only bad decision in office. n/t

[Stand and Fight]

65. I don't like his stance on the War in Iraq, but...

This is someone whom I can get behind and support. If it is truly official, I wish Rep. Emanuel the best of luck in his new position. His positions on health care is particularly important to me along with his closeness to both Clintons, and counters his less than desirable positions on some foreign policy issues. For that matter, I am not entirely happen with his membership in the NDC, but I hope that President Obama pushes back on some of his so-called "centrist" positions.

[Greyhound]

67. You mean his scheme to give more billions to corporations with no accountability?

His advocacy of requiring people to buy insurance from corporations and blocking attempts to restrict/regulate how they do business?

Yes indeed, putting a corporate war-monger in charge of the President's ear is very encouraging and signals the dawning of a new day in the Corporate States of North America.

[orleans]

68. ugh. n/t

[Bjorn Against]

72. Yesterday I was speaking with a friend who ran for Congress, she told me this would happen

She ran in 2006 and she had to deal with Rahm Emanuel, and she does not trust the man one bit. She told me that he had pretty much forced Obama to guarantee him the Chief of Staff position in exchange for his help in healing the wounds after the bitter primary season was coming to a close. Looks like she knew what she was talking about. Don't think for a minute that Emanuel was Obama's top choice for the position, he was forced to choose him.

[Greyhound]

74. Now that actually makes sense, thanks. n/t

:thumbsup:

[iamthebandfanman]

78. completely makes sense. still not good tho n/t

[NikolaC]

92. Makes Sense

Obama is pretty smart. When I originally heard about the selection I was upset because of Emanuel's record. However, from reading your post and another post upthread, and thinking about it more I understand. That's the nature of politics. :shrug:

[theboss]

108. Why would Obama want the toughest Dem on the Hill and a Chicagoan to boot?

Why would he want a ruthless winner who knows the legislative process?

Why would he want someone who half the Congress owes for their very jobs?

Why would he want someone who is close with Pelosi?

Why would he want someone who is know for his efficiency and organization?

Why would he want the best fundraiser in the House?

Why would he want someone who worked in the executive branch?

It simply makes no sense that he would want the best person for this important job.

[MilesColtrane]

75. If Obama were the intellectually incurious type this would disturb me more.

As it is, I believe that the fact that Emanuel works for Obama, not the other way around, will be established early and often.

Another bright spot: a CoS usually doesn't last long. He could burn out and be replaced in a year and a half.

[Celebration]

76. I think you are right about that

It's not as if he has the (lack of intellect) of Bush.

Totally makes sense that Barak promised him this.

[katty]

88. a very good point

[KharmaTrain]

77. COS = Gatekeeper Not Policy Maker

I would think some here would be glad to see Rahm gone from the House leadership...personally, I'm hoping Steny Hoyer is offered some non-descript post or an ambassadorship to Slovenia...some new leadership in the House is a good thing.

Manuel is a mean SOB...and that's what a good COS staff is. He doesn't give orders, he follows them and makes sure others do. If Obama says out of Iraq in 90 days, Emanuel says "yes sir" and gets it done. If its decided that health care needs massive restructuring, this is a guy who can bang the heads to get it done.

There's gonna be a lot of heavy lifting needed to be done in the first year or two of this administration (damn that felt good typing that) and President Obama will not have an easy time...he'll need as much muscle as he can get to move forward his agenda and keep the GOOP from screwing things up.

[bobbolink]

79. I"m delighted to know that Obama is already following Pelosi's advice.

:cry:

Oh, yeah... I gots "hope".

:cry:

[Greyhound]

81. This "choice" really put a damper on last night didn't it?

We'll just keep plugging away since, as ever, we are still on our own.

[bobbolink]

83. My "damper" was already on. I have no illusions that I'm included in the party.

:(

Some of us expected this sort of thing.

:(

"we are still on our own."

Indeed. And likely to get castigated for saying so. At least, I have.

[NikolaC]

94. LOL, Think About It

It took me a while too. She probably wanted him out of the HoR as much as we did, lol :).

[crickets]

80. Well...

He's no longer going to be chairman of the Democratic Caucus. That's a little silver lining. If he bombs as Chief of Staff by being too restrictive of information flow and contacts and gets booted...

then he's just gone. Hmm. :strokes chin:

[LWolf]

82. What a surprise.

:sarcasm:

:puke:

[Elidor]

93. If I need to know who he is...

:rofl:

If only I didn't know. Ignorance would be bliss.

[Pithy]

95. upon further thinking

1) Obama is hard to ruffle. He took every single bit of the worstt that the Rovian mud slingers had to throw at him and didn't blink an eye. I don't think for a moment that Emanuel will get the best of him or be allowed to control him.

2) Upthread there was a post with what sounded like good inside info. COS in exchange for helping mend the fence with the Clintons after the primaries.

3) If he disagrees with Obama's stance on Iraq etc and is in Congress, it could be an ugly battle of wills. If he's COS, he serves at the pleasure of the President. 'Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

Not saying they're enemies. Just that it's good to have a COS who knows how to get things done in DC, and sounds like Rahm's pretty adept at that.

Looking at Obama's campaign, I'm thinking he's already about 9 chess moves ahead of us right now.

[JerseygirlCT]

98. He has been all along

And while Rahm's always been close to the Clinton's, he's also been close to Obama. He managed to thread that needle during a rough primary.

I think he'll be a very loyal and dedicated COS. And I think, as you say, that Obama knows exactly what he's doing with this.

[JerseygirlCT]

96. Good

He's tough as nails.

He knows his way around Congress.

He's got friends in all the right places there and will be sure that Obama gets no flak.

He'll also be sure that things remain as disciplined inside the WH as they were inside the campaign.

I know some don't like the guy, but I think this is a terrific choice.

[greguganus]

99. Yeah great choice. One war monger leaves the White House and another one enters.

"Meet the new boss...same as the old boss..."

[JerseygirlCT]

101. As COS, he won't be making war decisions

Do you really think so little of our new president? Really? Has he impressed you as so gullible, such a pushover?

Get real.

He knows what he wants. He's nobody's fool, and nobody's tool. Rahm will be working for him, not the other way around.

[Pastiche423]

113. Damn, he's not even in the Oval Office yet

And he's already forgotten about CHANGE.

Just an another campaign slogan, was all it was.

:thumbsdown: