President-Elect Obama announced today that Rep. Rahm Emanuel would be his chief of staff. Eleven years ago, Elizabeth Bumiller of the New York Times profiled Rahm Emanuel and his two brothers in this article, "The Brothers Emanuel". Excerpt:
Today [in 1997], Rahm Emanuel is, at 37, one of the most powerful people at the White House. He is also the middle brother of two similar tank commanders: Ariel Emanuel, 36, a relentless Hollwyood television agent who left International Creative Management under cover of darkness to create a rival firm, and Ezekiel Emanuel, 39, an oncologist (with a doctorate in political theory) who is a nationally known medical ethicist at Harvard and a leading opponent of assisted suicide.
''We were cloned, full grown,'' says Ezekiel.
Of the three brothers, Rahm is the most famous, Ari is the richest and Zeke, over time, will probably be the most important. Zeke is also, according to his brothers, the smartest. Rahm, naturally, gets the most press attention. Last erm he managed the President's campaigns to pass the crime bill and the North American Free Trade Agreement, but this term he has taken over the job and close-to-the-Oval-Office cubbyhole of his friend Stephanopoulos. Now chief promoter of Clinton's small-bore issues like stopping teen-age smoking and requiring trigger locks on guns, Rahm has been singled out in recent profiles as the centrist, hyperactive counterreaction to the Stephanopoulos liberal cool.
[...]
Together, Emanuel Freres are a triumvirate for the 90's. All are rising stars in three of America's most high-profile and combative professions. All understand and enjoy power, and know how using it behind the scenes can change the way people think, live and die.
Rahm's brother Ari, the Hollywood agent, is said to be the inspiration for the character Ari Gold, played by Jeremy Piven (pictured above), on the HBO series Entourage.
The photo above is from Wikipedia.
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7 comments:
I can only imagine the fireworks if Rahm and Biden clash. ouch. Something tells me Rahm won't hold that position for too long. Maybe a year.
My money would be on Rahm in that clash. Rahm's ruthless and smart. Biden's neither.
Did you read the whole NYT article? I didn't excerpt the part about Rahm and the steak knife.
Yeah but from what I've heard elsewhere, Rahm doesn't get along with many people at all, even in his own party. By saying he wouldn't last too long I was talking about his abrasive personality in general, as opposed to only Biden taking him out. The whole cabinet could turn against him. I personally like people with strong personalities like Rahm, but I'm just speaking objectively. Chiefs of Staff's are supposed to be diplomatic, so I thought. Especially if the administration is going to include Republicans. Rahm is partisan attack-dog VP material. But maybe there is a master plan behind all this. We'll see I guess.
I did read the whole article. The part with the steak knife was pretty wild. I like how the family sticks together. That's how I want me and my boys to be.
Here's the WSJ editors' take on why Obama picked Rahm, "Obama's Real Opposition". Excerpt:
"Now that Barack Obama has vanquished John McCain, he faces a much greater foe: Democrats on Capitol Hill. They've humbled the last two Democratic Presidents -- and with their enhanced majorities next year, they'll be out to do it again.
Mr. Obama may appreciate the threat, because yesterday he offered Clinton White House veteran Rahm Emanuel a job as his chief of staff. But even that savvy, relatively sane liberal will have difficulties grappling with the fearsome committee chairmen and liberal interest groups that did so much to sabotage Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter."
Interesting.
Looks like Rahm was also on the BOD at freddie mac during a tumultuous time.
Something tells me that neither Emanuel, nor Barney Frank, nor Chris Dodd will be hauled before Congressional investigations to answer questions about their involvement in the inflation of the credit bubble.
Update:
That article is now MIA.
Too many people looking into Rahm's Background, so they removed it?
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