Rahm Emanuel

[Lalanae]

After reading that Obama picked Rahm Emanuel as the White House Chief of Staff, I decided to find out more about him.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/st ... _enforcer/

Good article about Rahm if your interested. I think it's hilarious that his brother Ari was the inspiration for Ari Gold on Entourage.

His extremely strong ties with Israel concern me a little, but otherwise I'm looking forward to seeing what he has to offer the new administration.

[miir]

Democrats, he says, will have to raise record amounts of campaign cash, challenge the Republicans in dozens of districts, offer concrete alternatives to Bush's failed policies -- and above all, hammer home a clear and consistent message.

Ooooh, spooky.

[Ashur]

So why would you be worried about his strong ties to Israel? Didn't Obama's campaign and his personal visit really go the extra mile confirming America's relationship with Israel, or do you think that just a bunch of lies to try to get the Florida vote?

I did notice this (Support for Israel) was one thing most VV lefties and his campaign seemed to diverge on and I'll be curious to see how the new administration (Edit: and VV!) reacts the next time Israel does something that pisses off the rest of the Middle East.

[Niffoni]

This must be part of that whole "Death to Israel" agenda that Joe was talking about.

[Nick]

I can't imagine Obama supporting Israel as blindly as Bush did. That would be massively counter productive for the region.

Maybe I'll be proved wrong. I hope not though. The whole "Israel is amazing and totally clean and pure and innocent whilst those dirty arab palestinians are all terrorists" mentality in Washington has done little but stagnate and perpetuate an already dire situation for more years than I care to remember.

(I'm generalising, but not by much tbh)

[Sueven]

I like Rahm. He's fairly centrist and he's a tough motherfucker. I think he's a good pick.

Interesting to watch the Republicans spin this as a "hyper-partisan" choice. Rahm is certainly a political animal and a tough fighter, but he's also a moderate. Kind of like a centrist Tom Delay.

[Siji]

Does it help any (to republicans) that he's a republican? Or is he an oddball republican? (I know nothing of him so I'm asking honestly)

[Sueven]

He's not a republican, he's a moderate democrat.

[Siji]

Odd, I could have sworn that I saw a republican indicator next to his name when I caught a glimpse of him on TV.

[Aslanna]

I think it was Rep. which would be for Representative indicating a House member.

[Keverian FireCry]

Lindsay Graham is a very conservative Republican and praises the pick:

"This is a wise choice by President-elect Obama.

"Rahm knows Capitol Hill and has great political skills. He can be a tough partisan but also understands the need to work together. He is well-suited for the position of White House Chief of Staff.

"I worked closely with him during the presidential debate negotiations which were completed in record time. When we hit a rough spot, he always looked for a path forward. I consider Rahm to be a friend and colleague. He's tough but fair. Honest, direct, and candid. These qualities will serve President-elect Obama well.

"Rahm understands the challenges facing our nation and will, consistent with the agenda set by President-elect Obama, work to find common ground where it exists. I look forward to working with him in his new position and will continue to do everything I can to help find a pathway forward on the difficult problems facing our nation."

[Ashur]

I like centrists/moderates of both parties.

[Avestan]

I can't imagine Obama supporting Israel as blindly as Bush did. That would be massively counter productive for the region.

Maybe I'll be proved wrong. I hope not though. The whole "Israel is amazing and totally clean and pure and innocent whilst those dirty arab palestinians are all terrorists" mentality in Washington has done little but stagnate and perpetuate an already dire situation for more years than I care to remember.

(I'm generalising, but not by much tbh)

In a debate, Obama said that Iran cannot be allowed to get nuclear weapons because they are promised to destroy Israel. He has always been pro-Israel (so am I).

[Xouqoa]

In a debate, Obama said that Iran cannot be allowed to get nuclear weapons because they are promised to destroy Israel. He has always been pro-Israel (so am I).

Out of curiosity, what makes Israel so great? I've never understood why we tolerate so much of the bullshit they pull while condemning the "other side" for similar actions.

[Nick]

Yes, blind support for the state of Israel's consistently inhumane actions is pretty horrific, regardless of whether Obama supports it or not.

Israel is obviously in a delicate situation. It doesn't deserve to be attacked merely because of the religiously important land it sits on, but the fact of the matter is that Israel has clearly abused its position of support (esp. within the Washington lobbyist cartels) and extracted a fair amount of entirely morally inexcusable actions upon the Palestinians.

Anyone who wants any sort of lasting peace in that area of the world is ultimately going to have to recognise that fact.

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

They have Jesus. In reality, I think a lot of it is the guilt of letting millions of Jews be slaughtered and standing by and doing nothing until after Germany was tearing up Europe. I think the other strong factor is that Israelites don't wipte their ass with their hands.

[Kilmoll the Sexy]

I clicked your post by accident Nick.,...but good post and I pretty much agree with you for the only time ever. Both sides of that conflict need to have their hands smacked by the UN and forced into complete compliance. Either side that attacks the other should have extremely harsh sanctions put down on them.

Honestly the large part of the disputed holy lands should be completely removed from jurisdiction of both parties and set up as an independanct city-state like the vatican. That could and should eliminate hostilities on both parts.

[Niffoni]

Out of curiosity, what makes Israel so great? I've never understood why we tolerate so much of the bullshit they pull while condemning the "other side" for similar actions.

Amusing quick capsule review by the Real Time panel on why.

[Avestan]

In a debate, Obama said that Iran cannot be allowed to get nuclear weapons because they are promised to destroy Israel. He has always been pro-Israel (so am I).

Out of curiosity, what makes Israel so great? I've never understood why we tolerate so much of the bullshit they pull while condemning the "other side" for similar actions.

For me, it is as simple as loyalty. Israel has been a strong ally for us (even if they have needed us more than we them recently). A Middle East with no Israel would be a much more dangerous place than it is today (in my opinion), and without our support they would be decimated. While no supprt is completely unconditional, I would feel the same way about a dozen other countries around the world.

[Gzette]

For me, it is as simple as loyalty. Israel has been a strong ally for us (even if they have needed us more than we them recently). A Middle East with no Israel would be a much more dangerous place than it is today (in my opinion), and without our support they would be decimated. While no supprt is completely unconditional, I would feel the same way about a dozen other countries around the world.

Since many problems stem from Israel's existence, I'm not sure the mid East is more stable because of a strong US ally. I'm not saying that the country needs to be cut off. The idea of no western consequences would definitely embolden some to attack Israel. However, I agree that both sides need to be reigned in. In my opinion, Israel's treatment of Palestine borders on reprehensible, and must be adjusted in order to achieve any long lasting stability in the region.

Pro-Israel agendas need to be changed to pro-peace, pro-compromise, pro-coexistence. Or we could carpet bomb all the religious temples, walls, mangers, whatever and then maybe no one will care anymore.

[Vetiria]

(even if they have needed us more than we them recently)

Recently?

[miir]

gentile guilt.

[Lalanae]

Speaking of possible cabinet picks, I ran across this short article about some of the Republicans that Obama may consider. What's great about it is the last couple paragraphs about Mitt Romney....

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar ... s-hed.html

One Republican that likely Obama won’t consider? Mitt Romney.

In answering a question on immigration, Obama said it would be impossible to lock all the illegal immigrants up, even if he wanted to.

“We'd clear out some of the prisons to make room for somebody who's a housekeeper at Mitt Romney's house,” he joked. “(He’s) an example of somebody who, 'Oh, we gotta be real tough. But my lawn, you know, is important.' "

Edit: I just noticed its a really old abc news blog, but the quote is still hilarious

[Ashur]

Rahm Emanuel was on the Board of Freddie Mac while there were all sorts of accounting shenanigans there. I'm not singling him out, as I wonder if the boards of most major corporations have been half-fucking asleep for the last decade, but I expect a media bitchfest about it sometime after the Obama lovefest is over.

[miir]

Rahm Emanuel was on the Board of Freddie Mac while there were all sorts of accounting shenanigans there. I'm not singling him out, as I wonder if the boards of most major corporations have been half-fucking asleep for the last decade, but I expect a media bitchfest about it sometime after the Obama lovefest is over.

Eight years ago, Clinton appointed him to that position... he held the position for less than 12 months.
He was not named in the SEC complaint filed last year against Freddie Mac.