Meet Rahmbo, the anti-Obama

BARRIE MCKENNA

From Friday's Globe and Mail - Canada

November 7, 2008 at 4:42 AM EST

WASHINGTON — Mercurial and in-your-face, Rahm Emanuel may be the anti-Obama.

And yet the Illinois congressman and former political adviser to Bill Clinton is about to become the highest ranking member of Barack Obama's White House staff - a co-president of sorts.

Mr. Obama's transition team confirmed yesterday that Mr. Emanuel, 48, has accepted the job of chief of staff, the president-elect's first key appointment.

Like Mr. Obama, Mr. Emanuel comes from Chicago. But that's where the similarities end. On the campaign trail, Mr. Obama was a model of poise, self-control and even-temperedness - traits even Mr. Emanuel's friends wouldn't ascribe to him.

Less beloved than respected, he's earned the nickname Rahmbo for his work on Capitol Hill and in the White House. Colleagues say he's prone to angry, profanity-filled outbursts.

"He's the exact opposite of Obama," said a source who worked with Mr. Emanuel in the Clinton White House. And that could make it tough for Mr. Obama to make good on his pledge to put partisanship aside and "bring people together," he added.

In his new job, Mr. Emanuel will be at the epicentre of every major move the Obama administration makes, including his controversial vow to renegotiate the North American free-trade agreement.

Trade happens to be a file Mr. Emanuel knows intimately. He helped push the final version of NAFTA through the U.S. Congress in 1996 over the objections of many Democrats.

Like many of Mr. Obama's advisers, Mr. Emanuel believes in free trade "in his heart of hearts," the former colleague suggested. But he also tends to be more of a political pragmatist than an ideologue.

The fate of NAFTA could become a thorny issue for Canada, particularly if Mr. Obama pushes for a reopening of the deal.

The Harper government is already in hot water over an embarrassing leak by Canadian officials of a private meeting with Obama economic adviser Austan Goolsbee. Mr. Goolsbee reportedly assured Canadian officials that Mr. Obama did not really intend to renegotiate NAFTA, directly contradicting what his boss was saying on the stump.

In spite of his gruff style, even Mr. Emanuel's critics acknowledge his enormous intellect and talent as a political strategist. He's credited with reviving the Democrats' fortunes after the 2004 election by recruiting promising young politicians to run in traditionally Republican districts, raising piles of campaign cash and bringing consistency to the party's message on the economy and the Iraq war.

Mr. Emanuel is widely regarded as the architect of the Democrats' majority in the House of Representatives - grabbing power in 2006 and vastly enhancing its majority on Tuesday night. After leaving the Clinton administration, he worked as an investment banker. In 2002, he won a House seat in north Chicago.

"He's got a great résumé, there's no doubt about it," said Stephen Hess, a former presidential speechwriter and fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington. "So it's a question of his temperament."

Mr. Hess pointed out that Mr. Emanuel is clearly from the "bare-knuckles school" of chiefs of staff - a style immortalized by Richard Nixon's chief of staff, Bob Haldeman, who was convicted of obstruction of justice in the Watergate scandal and went to jail.

"It doesn't always work," Mr. Hess said of the tough-guy approach, pointing out several highly successful presidential chiefs of staff with a more deft touch, including Howard Baker, who worked for Ronald Reagan.

A White House chief of staff manages the White House and its employees, but more importantly, he controls access to the president and his schedule. Many are former politicians.

It's rarely the last stop for ambitious politicians. Some move on to top cabinet posts after their White House stints, such as Dick Cheney (Gerald Ford's chief of staff) who became Vice-President, Alexander Haig (Richard Nixon's chief of staff) who became secretary of state and Donald Rumsfeld (Gerald Ford's chief of staff), who became defence secretary.

Paul Begala, who worked with Mr. Emanuel in the Clinton administration, told CNN yesterday that Mr. Emanuel's greatest assets are a close relationship with Barack and Michelle Obama, combined with his extensive Capitol Hill and White House experience.

Mr. Emanuel also has an impeccable Democratic pedigree. In addition to being close to the Clintons, he's also tight with the family of Chicago Mayor Richard Daley. Among his closest friends is David Axelrod, Mr. Obama's chief strategist who will likely join Mr. Emanuel in the White House.

"He's got effectiveness, strength and toughness. He's a great choice," said Mr. Begala, who once told Fortune magazine that Mr. Emanuel's style was "a cross between a hemorrhoid and a toothache."

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The chief's duties

The role of the White House chief of staff differs one administration to the next, but the essential duties remain the same. Paramount among them is to be available to the president at all times.

Managerial duties: select, structure and oversee key White House staff; control the flow of people and paper into the Oval Office; manage the flow of information and opinion to and from the president in a manner that honestly brokers differing perspectives.

Advisory duties: advise on issues of politics; policy and management, protect the president's interests; negotiate with Congress, cabinet and groups and individuals outside government.

Salary: The current chief of staff earns $165,200 (U.S.) a year, compared with the vice-president at $212,100 and the president at $400,000.

Source: The White House Project

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