Filling the Shoes of the Chicago Daley Dynasty – Rahm Emmanuel is He Up to the Task?

Mayor Daley with Rahm Emmanuel photo breaking Chicago news.com

The Daley Familyhas held the office of the Mayor of Chicago off and on since the 1950’s - first the father, then his son followed in his footsteps ruling over the Nations third largest metropolis. Like any other major metropolitan area in the United States, Chicago has had its share of problems, organized crime and corruption making headlines off and on for the past sixty years.

Trying to balance the “powers that be” and come off smelling like a rose is not an easy task; with the announcement by seven term Mayor Richard M. Daley that he would not seek reelection, nor name a successor to the “throne”, the field has opened and speculation is rampant nationally. With half of the Chicago “elite” installed in the White House, the one challenger that makes most sense, Rahm Emmanuel, is, once again, under the national press microscope.

As Chief of Staff of an administration that, into its second year, is struggling to maintain control of the behemoth that is the Democrat National Party (or Progressive Party if one will), as well as attempting to run the United States in manner similar to the City of Chicago. If anyone is a natural to go back to the “Windy City”, it would be Rahm – get out of the kitchen before the flames burn it down.
That might not be as easy a task however, as Politico reports that the major voting block of “progressives” that run Chicago’s political scene, are not terribly fond of Rahm. One thing about Socialists and the old revolutionary hippy guard, they lack patience. The charge: Emmanuel did not bring change fast enough, remarks were made to temper plans for several of the Progressive pet projects, and that made him more than a few enemies in the City.
That said, if anyone appears to be a survivor, it would be Emmanuel, who masterminded the takeover of the Congress and Senate in 2006 using the now infamous “blue dog” Democrats (or those Democrats who are all but Republican with the exception of the Democrat tag. The contentious Blue Dogs that Emmanuel brought to the Party gave them a bit of a scare when balking at a few of the bills that were controversial to say the least. However, after experiencing a bit of arm-twisting by Rahm and Pelosi, who had “brought them to the dance” so to speak, Blue Dogs eventually voted on Stimulus and Health Care Reform necessary to push the Progressive projects through.
Emmanuel therefore appears astute and tough enough to take on the job of the City that gave us Barak Obama, the Daley's and the Dillinger’s. Additionally, he will have the added benefit of not being in the neighborhood of Pennsylvania Avenue when the ship that is the Obama Administration goes through the 2011 election into uncharted and perilous waters. With this administration and this president is highly unlikely that he will, like Bill Clinton, move quickly to the middle when faced with a Congress and Senate full of Conservatives bent on restoring some confidence in both august bodies, while re-writing legislation and de-funding programs such as the Health Care Reform Act.

The Health Care reform act may have, by that time, been found unconstitutional – the court case with the Federal Government and the Commonwealth of Virginia, should be able to settle that issue this year. (Some speculation as to timing which should be right before the 2010 midterm vote.) Should the Commonwealth prevail, the entire bill, as written, is thrown out. Not one piece of the monstrosity which not one legislator read, was protected. The bill, in simple terms, was written as one piece; therefore, if it is not constitutionally sound then there is no health care reform. Some might speculate that it was set up that way in order for nervous Democrats to have a way out.

Clinton would have and did compromised when playing with the "other team", Obama may not, and the jury is out on that as he has not been tested. However, if basing futures on his current ideological bent in the face of national disaster is any indication of how he may react (ideologically), Emmanuel will be out of DC when the Obama ship, much like the Carter ship, goes down in 2012.

Emanuel has the background as a Chicago Politico, he is certainly tough enough, and although the Daley Dynasty leaves some huge corrupt shoes to fill, Emmanuel appears to be able to handle the job. He just has to reign in those pesky hippies on the hill the Ayers, and Progressives. Perhaps he can channel Dillinger for a moment and rid both the nation and academia of that bunch. In all seriousness, the City of Chicago and its race to fill the “Daley seat” will be some of the most interesting politico theater post the November mid-terms or not, perhaps Rahm Emmanuel is the man Daley had in mind for the job all along.