White House Chief of Staff
On November 6, 2008, Emanuel accepted the Cabinet-level position of White House Chief of Staff for Barack Obama. He resigned his congressional seat effective January 2, 2009. A special primary to fill his vacated congressional seat was held on March 3, 2009, and the special general election on April 7. Chicago newspapers reported that one candidate for that seat said at a forum that Emanuel had told him he may be interested in running for the seat again in the future.
Some Republican leaders criticized Emanuel's appointment because they believed it went against Obama's promises to make politics less divisive, given Emanuel's reputation as a partisan Democrat. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham disagreed, saying: "This is a wise choice by President-elect Obama. He's tough but fair—honest, direct and candid."
Ira Forman, executive director of the National Jewish Democratic Council, said that the choice indicates that Obama would not listen to the "wrong people" regarding the U.S.–Israel relationship. Some commentators opined that Emanuel would be good for the Israeli–Palestinian peace process because if Israeli leaders make excuses for not dismantling settlements, Emanuel will be tough and pressure the Israelis to comply. Some Palestinians expressed dismay at Obama’s appointment of Emanuel. Emanuel said that Obama did not need his influence to "orientate his policy toward Israel".
In a 2009 article in The New York Times, Emanuel was characterized as being "perhaps the most influential chief of staff of a generation".
At a closed-door meeting in the White House with liberal activists, Emanuel called them "fucking retarded" for planning to run TV ads attacking conservative Democrats who didn't support Obama's health-care overhaul. In February 2010, Emanuel apologized to organizations for the mentally handicapped for using the word "retarded." He expressed his regret to Tim Shriver, the chief executive of the Special Olympics after the remark was reported in an article by The Wall Street Journal about growing liberal angst at the Chief of Staff. The apology came as former Alaska Governor and conservative activist Sarah Palin called on President Obama to fire Emanuel via the former Governor's Facebook page.
As Chief of Staff, Emmanuel was known for his good sense of humor. During a staff meeting, when Chief technology officer Aneesh Chopra gave uniformly upbeat reports, Emanuel is said to have looked at him and said: "Whatever you're taking, I want some." Emanuel had a hand in war strategy, political maneuvering, communications and economic policy. Bob Woodward wrote in his book, Obama's Wars that Emanuel made a habit of calling up CIA Director Leon Panetta and asking about the lethal drone strikes aimed at Al Qaeda. "Who did we get today?" he would ask.
In 2010, Emanuel was reported to have conflicts with other senior members of the president's team and ideological clashes over policy. He was also the focal point of criticism from left-leaning Democrats for the administration's perceived move to the center. By September 2010, with the Democrats anticipating heavy losses in midterm elections, this was said to precipitate Emanuel's departure as Chief of Staff.
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