An ex-aide to former President Barack Obama might be stepping into the next presidential race.
Rahm Emanuel, who served as White House chief of staff and recently as Japanese ambassador, is mulling a return to executive mission — but this time as the top guy in charge, according to Politico.
“I’m not done with public service and I’m hoping public service is not done with me,” Emanuel, 65, told the outlet as part of a magazine profile.
Emanuel has held numerous positions throughout his adult life: Chicago mayor, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus as an Illinois representative, and Wall Street banker.
His proponents suggest his unique experience may give him a sweeping advantage over other potential Democratic candidates, like Maryland Governor Wes Moore and California Governor Gavin Newsom.
“Who has more relevant experience?” David Axelrod, former White House official and a friend of Emanuel, told the magazine. “He understands how to win and speaks bluntly in an idiom that most folks understand.”
Apart from his diplomatic and political connections, Emanuel has built strong relationships with business, military, media and Hollywood leaders.
There are signs that the former White House aide might be serious about the run. The outlet reported Emanuel is testing out a stump speech and looking for an issue he can make his own.
One that could be a hallmark of his campaign is education, or the lack thereof. The potential candidate has become increasingly frustrated with new data showing two-thirds of eighth graders can’t read at a grade level.
“I am done with the discussion of locker rooms, I am done with the discussion of bathrooms and we better start having a conversation about the classroom,” Emanuel said during a Democracy Forward conference in Washington, D.C. last month.
“We can lead a discussion and force a topic onto the agenda of this country that’s worthy of having a debate about.”
The best time for Emanuel to test his presidential hopes could be now, the Politico article stated, especially after the Democrats’ recent calamitous election loss.
“Democrats are as demoralized as any time in modern history, their voters desperately want to win and were open to untraditional candidates even before Trump,” the profile pointed out.
There are few downsides to Emanuel running, the outlet argues. Even if he doesn’t win, he could score a key position in the upcoming administration in the State Department or Pentagon.
One concern could be whether he’ll be considered a candidate of the past.
“His connection to Barack Obama is decades old,” Gilda Cobb-Hunter, a South Carolina Democratic lawmaker, told the outlet. “We’re in a different time.”
Presidential candidates typically launch their campaigns two years before the general election.
