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A Word on Rahm Emanuel

By Big Tent Democrat, Section Elections 2006
Posted on Wed Nov 08, 2006 at 09:43:09 AM EST
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When you win, you bask in glory. And Rahm Emanuel deserves credit for steering the Democratic House team to victory this election.

But Rahm Emanuel is no boy wonder and he made his share of blunders, most notably wasting 3 million dollars on Tammy Duckworth while not funding or underfunding Dem challengers in other closers races all over the country. Indeed, it goes to one of Emanuel's biggest problems - his supreme ego and hubris. He carefully cultivated and cared for his own image in this cycle, causing needless rancor in the Dem ranks.

And he seems intent on continuing that negative aspect of his style and actions. This statement is simply unnecessary:

In private talks before the election, Emanuel and other top Democrats told their members they cannot allow the party's liberal wing to dominate the agenda next year.

What does that mean? Does that mean Emanuel wants to ignore Iraq as he did earlier this year? Or has he learned his lesson on that? Emanuel is something to worry about for Dems. A loose cannon with some bad instincts.

Congratulations Rahm, but go sit down and be quiet for a while.

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    A Word on Rahm Emanuel | 4 comments (4 topical)

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    Haven't you been paying attention? (4.00 / 1) (#1)
    by soccerdad on Wed Nov 08, 2006 at 09:55:11 AM EST
    What does that mean?

    Prowar, procorporation, antiunion, antiworker [they will throw a bone], american exceptionalism, and a foreign policy based on american exceptionalism and imperialism although the rhetoric will be nicer and the pretense of cooperation will be there. basically less arrogant republicans.

    Come on people wake up. he and the rest of the DLC are republican lite.

    oh yes (none / 0) (#3)
    by dutchfox on Wed Nov 08, 2006 at 10:22:35 AM EST
    i couldn't agree with you more.

    Parent
    It means he's a ego (none / 0) (#2)
    by Dadler on Wed Nov 08, 2006 at 10:12:30 AM EST
    It means he's afraid of real politics, and wants to bask in the glow.  That's it.  Bask.  

    What it means (none / 0) (#4)
    by hellskitchen on Wed Nov 08, 2006 at 11:52:43 AM EST
    is that the progressive wing of the party - represented more by organizations like Move On than the Democratic Party itself - has to keep on being the conscience of the party.

    One of the truisms that I learned when I first became involved in politics back in 1960, when I became a member of a Reform Democratic Club in NYC, was that ego and winning are like narcotics in politics.  It soured me on being involved in politics for many years.  

    Many years later I served on a board with a local politician and there wasn't an action taken by the board that she didn't first oppose loudly and obnoxiously, but then when the action was successful, she tried to take credit for its introduction and approval.  

    And party affiliation has nothing to do with this.  How many times have we seen politicians, on both sides of the aisle, vote for a bill while holding their noses because they have negotiated their vote?  Then in the next election cycle, they include that vote as an example of their "initiative" on that issue.

    The attempt, this past week, by the politicians and the MSM, to spin the CW about election strategy away from the progressive movement to the party has been laughable.  Unfortunately, the disingenuousness of Emmanuel and Schumer will pass over the heads of most of the electorate.  

    To me, having some progressives work from the outside, away from the clubhouse mentality, may be a solution to keeping the process honest.  I think the tremendous financing capabilities of the various progressive groups outside of the Democratic Party offer an alernative that is stunning.  The money raised this year was able to finance campaigns ignored by the Democratic Party.  Emmanuel can boast his brilliance all he wants, but as long as he doesn't have control of the progressive purse all it is is talk.

    PS - in my discussion about ego and winning being a narcotic in politics, I am not suggesting that politicians are inherently bad people.  They are not.  They are human beings with strong egos, and winning is an elixir that is hard to resist.  It is when winning becomes more important than what a politician stands for that we enter the downward spin of addiction.

    A Word on Rahm Emanuel | 4 comments (4 topical)

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