Rahm Emanuel Accepts Chief of Staff Position for Obama

...as reported by Fox News.

Rahm Emanuel

Yep, this is the change we need alright, an old Clinton staffer.

In case you aren't familiar with some of Rahm's experience. Here's a couple of tidbits.

As a Democratic Party official, he once sent a pollster who was late delivering polling results a dead fish in a box.

Chicago Tribune deputy Washington bureau chief Naftali Bendavid writes that, as about a score of them sat around a picnic table mushily declaring their love for one another, Emanuel picked up a knife and called out the names of different politicians who had "f–––ed us." After each name, Emanuel would cry out, "Dead man!"—and stab the knife into the table.

Way to go Obama!

Like I said....

Same old, same old.

Yep, that's the kind of change I was expecting. And, I am not joking or being snarky.

Well, I am happy to see that at least some of us understand that the marketed and polished image of the magical Obama who will increase all the love and harmony in America is just another nice packaging job done by the media. The party system is broken, the people in it are already marred by their proximity to the corporate power whores. They think and speak just like the mafiosi.

Any different from the rest? No. But I would still be pleased to be proved wrong.

Believe me Maxmars, so would I.

Obama wasn't my choice by a long shot, but I care more about this country than I do myself or my choices.

I wish with everything I am that he turns out to be a great President, I just don't have any reason to believe he will.

I do however, have signs like this, that he won't.

www.newsweek.com...

"Rahm Emanuel has been described as a street fighter with a killer instinct—as explosive, profane, wired and ruthless—sometimes as a compliment, sometimes not. But no one has ever cast him in the role of elder statesman, at least up until now. Emanuel, a 48-year-old congressman who grew up, somewhat weirdly, to study ballet and practice Chicago politics, has generally adapted to his situation in a combative, not diplomatic, manner. As an indifferent high-school student, he badly cut his finger on the beef-slicing machine at Arby's. That night, after his high-school prom, he jumped into Lake Michigan. The tip of his finger became infected and he nearly died. Ever since, Emanuel has relished raising his hacked-off middle figure at his foes. In conversation with almost anyone about anything, Emanuel uses the F word like a sergeant in a World War II motor pool."

But it may be that the most obvious candidate is Emanuel. He is an old friend of Barack Obama's campaign strategist, David Axelrod (so close that Axelrod signed the ketuba, a Jewish marriage contract, at Emanuel's wedding, an honor that usually goes to a best friend). At the same time, Emanuel worked on Bill Clinton's '92 campaign and was an effective operative in the Clinton White House, and he is tight with various Clinton advisers like James Carville and former campaign manager Patti Solis Doyle (whom he calls his "little sister" from the Chicago political wars). He has the loyalty of many Democratic congressmen, whom he recruited and for whom he prodigiously fund-raised, helping to secure the Democratic majority in the 2006 election.

www.newsweek.com...

He sounds like my kind of guy, I am sure he will do a fine job as Chief of Staff. The Chief of Staff is often dubbed The Gatekeeper and Rahm will definitely be good at that. This is a smart choice on Obama's part, think like a politician and you will see things more clearly.





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[edit on 5-11-2008 by 12m8keall2c]

reply to post by DraconianKing


You know what? That doesn't sound too bad. I mean, as descriptions go, it seems rather 'human'.

Well, as I said, I will be very happy if my initial judgment was incorrect. I hope he's not another one of those 'dual-citizen' types. I can't abide public servants who betray a simple loyalty to the nation which they claim to 'serve.'

Emanuel is the son of a Jerusalem-born pediatrician who was a member of the Irgun (Etzel or IZL), a militant Zionist group that operated in Palestine between 1931 and 1948.

www.haaretz.com...

and yes he is a Dual Citizen and no he should not be allowed in government just like a dual citizen of the UK/US or France/US should be allowed in. There is one thing to be an ally but this is just disgusting and unconstitutional.

And if Obama appointed a total outsider with no White House and/or national experience at all you would be criticizing that.

Chief of staff keeps all the egos in line and on message... not exactly a job for the easy touch kinda guy. Anything above congressional level is played hard ball.

Originally posted by grover
And if Obama appointed a total outsider with no White House and/or national experience at all you would be criticizing that.

Well we honestly couldn't criticize it too much.

That description pretty well fits Obama too. Might as well have the whole administration inexperienced.

Isn't this a nifty appointment. Just the kind of guy the sensitive types need in the white house . I believe these sensitive folks are concerned about the arrogant nature of the U.S. and how other countries perceive us. This guy should fit the bill nicely. Sounds like he could give the "Soup Nazi" a run for his money.

reply to post by nyk537


Either you are new in politics and the political game or either you missed history in school and college.

See is the tradition in any political party winner that the president elect will chose for his cabinet mostly season members of his party.

Look into any President before Obama and see what history tells you.

Deny ignorance.

I have no problem bashing the members of any president cabinet but don't make it look like this new president is the first one to do what he is doing

reply to post by nyk537


Why don't try to go beyond party or ideology and suck it up and wish the man well?

After all he isn't going to be your or my president... he's going to be our president.

I realize he isn't the first to do this, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I don't plan on making life easy for Obama over the next 4 years.

Don't get me wrong though, I love the country first, and I hope he succeeds.

I hope I can get on here in 4 years and admit that I was wrong and that Obama was a great President.

I really do.



** Oh and I did wish him well. Check the thread in my sig. **

[edit on 6-11-2008 by nyk537]

reply to post by marg6043


Leave it to marg to hit the nail on the head. a star for you my dear.

What we need more of is blueberry muffins... no one can be mean spirited and hateful with a nice warm blueberry muffin in hand... YUM!!!

[edit on 6-11-2008 by grover]

Originally posted by nyk537
I realize he isn't the first to do this, but that doesn't mean I have to like it.

Exactly!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and I will be right next to you scrutinizing his cabinet because the people needs to be informed of what this members presidential appointees have in their closets, after all they will be making decisions that will affect all of us.

Thanks Grover,

Mmmm Grover….I like the Strawberry ones best, or the mixed berry.



Back on topic now....

I don't know too much about the newly appointed Chief so I did some searching through some news archives, and it sounds like President Obama has hired himself one feisty bulldog, whose plan for the Dems in 2005 sounds like the Obama Presidential platform...

link

Democrats should run on in 2006: universal college education, universal health care for anyone who works, bringing down the national debt and cutting U.S. dependence on foreign oil in half within a decade.

In his own voting record, Emanuel is no Gingrich-style radical. A certified member of the Beltway establishment, and a political centrist to boot, he favors incremental, family-friendly policies in the Clinton mode: tax breaks to help the middle class pay for college, incentives to encourage workers to save for retirement, re-importing drugs to lower prescription costs. He has sharply criticized the president's handling of the war in Iraq, but he doesn't agree with those who say we should pull out immediately, favoring a more gradual withdrawal based on "benchmarks" for training Iraqi troops.

"We're the party of change," Emanuel tells me. "We're the party of a new direction -- a break from rampant cronyism and the status quo. Period."

From the information found in this one article, it is no surprise that Obama has appointed him to the Chief position...

This is Emanuel's platform..



For the members convenience here are a few more articles to bring us up to speed on the new Chief of Staff.

NYTimes 1997 - Topic " Brothers Emanuel "

NYTimes 2002 - Topic "Rahm's Congressional Run"

CNN Transcript JUN 03 - Topic," Pres. Bush "Mission Accomplished" moment."

Although my candidate did not succeed in his campaign for the Presidency, I will give the new administration the benefit of the doubt, I am actually more concerned with what Pelosi and Reid and the crew at the Capitol have planned for the citizens..

May we all be in better shape at the end of President Obama's term

For anyone still interested in this thread and Rahm, I offer this excerpt from a Wayne Madsen Report recently sent to me via email:

Obama faced with security problem at outset of transition process
WMR has learned from informed U.S. intelligence sources that prospective Barack Obama White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel has an active FBI counter-intelligence file maintained on him. Emanuel's rise to the Chief of Staff position may pose a significant security problem for President-elect Obama if the FBI insists on conducting the full background security investigation normally required for senior White House officials.

Questions about Emanuel's links to the Israeli intelligence service, the Mossad, were allegedly so great that President Bill Clinton was forced to dismiss Emanuel from the White House staff in 1998. One of the FBI agents who discovered Emanuel's dealings with Israeli intelligence was, according to our sources, the late FBI counter-terrorism Assistant Director John O'Neill. O'Neill retired after being set up in a smear operation involving a temporarily stolen brief case in 2001. O'Neill and another FBI agent who still works for the bureau and shall remain nameless at this point to protect him and his career discovered that Emanuel was heavily involved in the decision to place intern Monica Lewinsky close to President Clinton. O'Neill accepted the top security position for Kroll Associates at the World Trade Center. O'Neill was killed in the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center.

WMR has also reported that O'Neill was a close friend of slain retired Houston CIA station chief Roland V. "Tony" Carnaby, who was similarly investigating Israeli intelligence operations in the Houston area when Houston police shot and killed him last April.

Emanuel reportedly had knowledge of Israeli intelligence penetration of White House communications systems and Lewinsky, in sworn testimony before the Office of Independent Counsel, stated: "He [Clinton] suspected that a foreign embassy [it is now known that embassy was that of Israel] was tapping his telephones, and he proposed cover stories." Lewinsky continued, "If ever questioned, she should say that the two of them were just friends. If anyone ever asked about their phone sex, she should say that they knew their calls were being monitored all along, and the phone sex was just a put on."

WMR has learned from U.S. intelligence sources that Emanuel was discovered to be part of a political intelligence and blackmail operation directed against Clinton by Israel's Likud Party and Binyamin Netanyahu to sink Clinton's proposed Middle East peace deal. We have also learned that the FBI investigation of Emanuel is part of a file code-named the "Mega file." "Mega" is a reference to a top-level Mossad agent in the Reagan administration who was said to have run a number of Israeli agents, including U.S. Navy spy Jonathan Pollard.

I offer no opinions about the content - except to say that this is not exactly what I would consider 'change'. Especially from the perspective of the undue Israeli representation within our government service. But hey, if you want to make this a political thing, that's on you. I feel it's not a political thing, it's an ideology thing; do dual-citizens belong in leadership within our policy-makers and executive branch of government? I vote no. But somehow, my vote doesn't seem to matter.

reply to post by Maxmars


Hey but with the legacy of Bush we all knew that he opened the doors for any future President to step and crap over the constitution of this nation.

So the same way that the FBI can not even get funding to scrutinized those that cause the economic meltdown while been rewarded with our tax payer money the same way will be with any new appointee on the brand new president cabinet, they are all beyond the law.