Rahm Is Eager to Enter the Race: Yes, He's Considering a Presidential Bid.
The former Chicago mayor has begun campaigning, actively seeking innovative methods to criticize Trumpism from a centrist perspective.
TroibNews 
**Rahm Wants to Run**
Yes, that Rahm. And yes, for that office — the presidency.
“I’ve only been back two months, I have no idea what I’m doing,” Rahm I. Emanuel, operative-turned-politician-turned-diplomat, shared with me before adding his usual refrain since returning from his role as ambassador to Japan. “I’m not done with public service and I’m hoping public service is not done with me.”
Disregard that evasive comment. Rahm Emanuel is making his intentions clear.
Since returning to the U.S. in January from Tokyo — a position he transformed into the role of American envoy to all of Asia — Emanuel has been one of the most prominent figures among Democrats. It doesn’t matter that he currently holds no office and hasn’t appeared on a ballot in ten years.
List any political podcast, and it is likely that Emanuel has either been a guest or will be soon. He quickly secured a contract with CNN and landed a regular column with the Washington Post, an impressive feat for a former official in a time of reduced resources for news organizations.
Additionally, he is on the lecture circuit, making appearances at both paid and volunteer events for groups such as the Chicago Economic Club and Realtors. Emanuel is intentionally steering clear of Ivy League campuses and will kick off a series of talks at service academies by speaking at West Point later this month.
What stands out even more is the casual certainty among those in high-level Democratic circles who know Emanuel — which is most everyone — regarding the likelihood of his candidacy.
The strongest indication that Rahm may run is that he is already testing the waters for a stump speech, or at least preparing to highlight an issue he can claim as his own.
I witnessed this during his appearance in Washington at a conference hosted by Democracy Forward, a liberal organization spearheading litigation efforts against the Trump administration.
“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 remarked, earning applause as he referenced a recent study indicating that more than two-thirds of eighth graders are not reading at grade level.
He repeatedly returned to this study and explicitly connected the policy implications to the political landscape, staying true to his Rahmian style.
“We can lead a discussion and force a topic onto the agenda of this country that’s worthy of having a debate about,” Emanuel stated about the troubling student data. Unlike, for instance, the fate of an obscure federal agency, which had dominated elite coverage early in Trump's presidency. “The New York Times put crumbs all the way to the front door of the USAID headquarters and we just walked along back there,” he lamented of his party.
Shortly after his trip to Washington, Emanuel zoomed to Los Angeles to appear on Bill Maher’s show, where he ramped up his message for a less restrained audience.
“In seventh grade, if I had known I could’ve said the word ‘they’ and gotten in the girls’ bathroom, I would’ve done it,” he quipped. “We literally are a superpower, we’re facing off against China with 1.4 billion people and two-thirds of our children can’t read at eighth grade level.”
In those two appearances, there were both strengths and weaknesses.
Emanuel possesses a remarkable knack for identifying significant issues that are often overlooked, along with the tactical prowess to capitalize on the political advantages of such matters, packaged with a catchy soundbite to elevate stark statistics. He adeptly links domestic policy with geopolitical issues and adeptly uses another, often contentious topic as a way to redirect the conversation to areas where he, and many in his party, are more comfortable fighting. Gavin, are you paying attention?
However, there are also potential challenges.
Emanuel can come across as more of a tactician than a politician, sometimes sounding dismissive of people and exuding a brusqueness that might obscure his abilities in less metropolitan areas, such as Orangeburg, South Carolina.
This brings us to what many readers might be pondering since the opening statement: Really, Rahm for President?
“20 years ago it would have been an article in The Onion,” joked Doug Sosnik, who collaborated with Emanuel during the Clinton White House and now contemplates whether this combative figure could meet the moment, suggesting that no other potential candidate is as qualified.
David Axelrod, a longtime friend of Rahm, has also warmed to the proposition. “Who has more relevant experience?” he asked, adding that Emanuel possesses two additional compelling traits for the party right now. “He understands how to win and speaks bluntly in an idiom that most folks understand.”
I began considering the possibility of Rahm entering the presidential race after observing him in Tokyo shortly after last year’s election. He was then ensconced in Douglas MacArthur’s former residence but still managed to insert himself into numerous post-election narratives by sharing memorable quotes.
In the weeks following the Democrats' loss of the presidency, Emanuel appeared eager to engage in the political arena. He was eyeing various opportunities, including the DNC chair position, the Illinois governor's race in 2026, a potential Senate seat held by Richard J. Durbin in the same year, the Chicago mayor's position in 2027, and, of course, the presidency in 2028.
However, the chair contest devolved into a battle among committee members, Gov. JB Pritzker is largely expected to seek a third term, and Emanuel likely doesn’t want to tarnish his career by losing a primary for a Senate seat that doesn’t interest him, especially after having served as mayor.
Yet, there is something larger than the interplay of political game pieces.
Presidential runs hinge on timing, and if there’s ever a moment that Emanuel could be viable, it is now. Democrats find themselves demoralized, their voters yearning for victory and open to unconventional candidates. The modern media landscape also favors sharp, concise messaging. Furthermore, they are desperate for someone who can effectively confront Republicans.
Who, Democrats ask, can break through like Trump and place the opposition on the defensive? Emanuel possesses two vital characteristics: relentlessness and ubiquity.
As they say in sports, he has a motor.
Didyaseemyoped?
He is overflowing with ideas, angles, proposals, and clever remarks. In the pandemic days of 2020 — merely a year after leaving City Hall and already eager to get involved — he contacted former President Joe Biden’s campaign so frequently through calls, texts, and emails that aides had to delegate the task of managing his outreach to pollster John Anzalone.
By the end of Trump’s presidency, while voters may grow tired of seeing him on camera daily — a penchant the president seems determined to maintain — it is hard to envision another Democrat who could navigate nearly every issue with such skill. I joked with colleagues about the poor State Department official overseeing Japan who had to monitor the ambassador’s prolific output, even when he was ostensibly focused on foreign affairs.
Emanuel, despite being steeped in traditional media, is well-suited for a TikTok campaign, where provocation is all but essential.
Yet, Emanuel contrasts sharply with Trump in significant ways.
To borrow from Axelrod, Rahm could be the antidote rather than the echo of a president uninterested in governance, a chaos that ensues from it.
No other living Democrat who hasn't previously run for president would possess a more comprehensive understanding of all facets of the role. In fact, aside from Leon Panetta, who could come close? Emanuel has experience on campaigns, including a presidential bid, served as a senior aide in two White Houses, dabbled in high finance, held three terms in Congress, been a big-city mayor for eight years, and served as envoy to one of the world’s largest economies for nearly four years. And he’s only 65.
He has established relationships with numerous key figures in politics, diplomacy, military affairs, business, and the media, and thanks to his agent brother, he even has ties to Hollywood. It’s not surprising he may think, well, why not me?
The Republican equivalents are James A. Baker III and Dick Cheney, both of whom concluded their public careers with impressive posts.
This raises what might be the most logical rationale for Emanuel’s potential candidacy: Even in defeat, he could still raise his profile for a similar final act, whether at the State Department or the Pentagon.
“If you run for any other office, you win or lose,” Axelrod noted. “But if you run a smart, spirited race for president, you can elevate yourself. So why not jump in the pool?”
As a friend of Emanuel’s pointed out — not that it hadn’t crossed the mind of this fiercely competitive Chicagoan — he would be devastated if he ran for another office and lost.
Even in these early stages, Emanuel displayed an interest in understanding how potential rivals fared at the Democracy Forward conference, inquiring about Pritzker's performance among attendees. Emanuel has maintained an unblemished record, having never lost an election, a status he preserved by not seeking a third term as mayor in 2019, a contest he might have lost.
He had intense confrontations with teachers’ unions in Chicago and left some liberals infuriated by his handling of the Laquan McDonald case, where a Black teenager was shot while fleeing a police officer.
However, if there’s a group that might be less pleased with his representation of the Democratic Party than the left, it’s Republicans, who fear he’d pull his party toward the center.
Rahm has earned the respect and admiration of his Republican colleagues for his skills and determination, and he impressed a younger generation of lawmakers from both parties who visited Tokyo, expecting a tough character and instead discovering goodwill in the form of gifts left in their hotel rooms.
“Rahm Emanuel is the best all-around player for the Democratic Party,” stated Rep. Tom Cole, an Oklahoma Republican who served alongside Emanuel in the House. “Who else has been as successful as a political operative, a party leader, an elected official, a high-level staffer, and a diplomat?”
However, Democratic primaries are not generally swayed by the likes of Tom Cole.
Few names — much like Cher and Madonna, only the first name is required — elicit such visceral disdain on the left as Rahm. He would likely face fierce and determined opposition from progressives, both for his relatively moderate economic views in an era dominated by wealth disparity and for his willingness to negotiate on cultural and identity issues.
Yes, I know, those extreme left voices seem somewhat subdued now. But will they still be by the time three years pass? Even if the influence of progressives diminishes, the opinions of Black voters, the ultimate arbiters of Democratic primaries, will not — and it’s uncertain if Emanuel can win their support.
“I’m not sure people in South Carolina know or care who Rahm Emanuel is,” remarked Gilda Cobb-Hunter, a veteran South Carolina Democratic lawmaker. “His connection to Barack Obama is decades old. We’re in a different time now.”
Indeed, political dynamics shift rapidly.
Consider the period often compared to the current one, the aftermath of 2004. Who would have predicted that reclaiming red states like Indiana and North Carolina — remember the Jesusland map? — would involve nominating a progressive big-city liberal with African roots and a Muslim name? Conventional wisdom at that time was focused on appealing to white Southerners.
A white man nearing 70 who relishes confrontation with the left and candidly discusses hard truths regarding the Democratic brand might seem logical now, but it could also be seen as fighting a past battle after three years of Trump’s chaotic reign.
If he were to run, Emanuel’s greatest challenge could be encapsulated by James Carville’s memorable observation about George H. W. Bush in 1992, captured in the documentary *The War Room*: “He reeks of yesterday.”
As Emanuel concluded at the Democracy Forward conference, a middle-aged attendee seated behind me remarked sarcastically: “Bring back the DLC, yay, I feel like I’m in high school again.”
If Democrats — as they did in 1992 and again in 2008 — ultimately lean toward wanting an outlook steeped in the future rather than nostalgia, it could spell trouble for Emanuel.
Of course, he has played prominent roles with both next-generation Democratic leaders who have won in those elections. He likely could again. The only remaining question is whether he believes it is essential to first run or if he could ascend without committing to a campaign, much like Cheney and Baker, who both considered but never pursued bids.
Yet that assumes he wouldn’t seek to win.
“Nobody,” Rahm told me, “looks at a presidential campaign and does it to say, ‘Well, we’ll see what this feels like.'"
Ian Smith for TROIB News
Yes, that Rahm. And yes, for that office — the presidency.
“I’ve only been back two months, I have no idea what I’m doing,” Rahm I. Emanuel, operative-turned-politician-turned-diplomat, shared with me before adding his usual refrain since returning from his role as ambassador to Japan. “I’m not done with public service and I’m hoping public service is not done with me.”
Disregard that evasive comment. Rahm Emanuel is making his intentions clear.
Since returning to the U.S. in January from Tokyo — a position he transformed into the role of American envoy to all of Asia — Emanuel has been one of the most prominent figures among Democrats. It doesn’t matter that he currently holds no office and hasn’t appeared on a ballot in ten years.
List any political podcast, and it is likely that Emanuel has either been a guest or will be soon. He quickly secured a contract with CNN and landed a regular column with the Washington Post, an impressive feat for a former official in a time of reduced resources for news organizations.
Additionally, he is on the lecture circuit, making appearances at both paid and volunteer events for groups such as the Chicago Economic Club and Realtors. Emanuel is intentionally steering clear of Ivy League campuses and will kick off a series of talks at service academies by speaking at West Point later this month.
What stands out even more is the casual certainty among those in high-level Democratic circles who know Emanuel — which is most everyone — regarding the likelihood of his candidacy.
The strongest indication that Rahm may run is that he is already testing the waters for a stump speech, or at least preparing to highlight an issue he can claim as his own.
I witnessed this during his appearance in Washington at a conference hosted by Democracy Forward, a liberal organization spearheading litigation efforts against the Trump administration.
“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 remarked, earning applause as he referenced a recent study indicating that more than two-thirds of eighth graders are not reading at grade level.
He repeatedly returned to this study and explicitly connected the policy implications to the political landscape, staying true to his Rahmian style.
“We can lead a discussion and force a topic onto the agenda of this country that’s worthy of having a debate about,” Emanuel stated about the troubling student data. Unlike, for instance, the fate of an obscure federal agency, which had dominated elite coverage early in Trump's presidency. “The New York Times put crumbs all the way to the front door of the USAID headquarters and we just walked along back there,” he lamented of his party.
Shortly after his trip to Washington, Emanuel zoomed to Los Angeles to appear on Bill Maher’s show, where he ramped up his message for a less restrained audience.
“In seventh grade, if I had known I could’ve said the word ‘they’ and gotten in the girls’ bathroom, I would’ve done it,” he quipped. “We literally are a superpower, we’re facing off against China with 1.4 billion people and two-thirds of our children can’t read at eighth grade level.”
In those two appearances, there were both strengths and weaknesses.
Emanuel possesses a remarkable knack for identifying significant issues that are often overlooked, along with the tactical prowess to capitalize on the political advantages of such matters, packaged with a catchy soundbite to elevate stark statistics. He adeptly links domestic policy with geopolitical issues and adeptly uses another, often contentious topic as a way to redirect the conversation to areas where he, and many in his party, are more comfortable fighting. Gavin, are you paying attention?
However, there are also potential challenges.
Emanuel can come across as more of a tactician than a politician, sometimes sounding dismissive of people and exuding a brusqueness that might obscure his abilities in less metropolitan areas, such as Orangeburg, South Carolina.
This brings us to what many readers might be pondering since the opening statement: Really, Rahm for President?
“20 years ago it would have been an article in The Onion,” joked Doug Sosnik, who collaborated with Emanuel during the Clinton White House and now contemplates whether this combative figure could meet the moment, suggesting that no other potential candidate is as qualified.
David Axelrod, a longtime friend of Rahm, has also warmed to the proposition. “Who has more relevant experience?” he asked, adding that Emanuel possesses two additional compelling traits for the party right now. “He understands how to win and speaks bluntly in an idiom that most folks understand.”
I began considering the possibility of Rahm entering the presidential race after observing him in Tokyo shortly after last year’s election. He was then ensconced in Douglas MacArthur’s former residence but still managed to insert himself into numerous post-election narratives by sharing memorable quotes.
In the weeks following the Democrats' loss of the presidency, Emanuel appeared eager to engage in the political arena. He was eyeing various opportunities, including the DNC chair position, the Illinois governor's race in 2026, a potential Senate seat held by Richard J. Durbin in the same year, the Chicago mayor's position in 2027, and, of course, the presidency in 2028.
However, the chair contest devolved into a battle among committee members, Gov. JB Pritzker is largely expected to seek a third term, and Emanuel likely doesn’t want to tarnish his career by losing a primary for a Senate seat that doesn’t interest him, especially after having served as mayor.
Yet, there is something larger than the interplay of political game pieces.
Presidential runs hinge on timing, and if there’s ever a moment that Emanuel could be viable, it is now. Democrats find themselves demoralized, their voters yearning for victory and open to unconventional candidates. The modern media landscape also favors sharp, concise messaging. Furthermore, they are desperate for someone who can effectively confront Republicans.
Who, Democrats ask, can break through like Trump and place the opposition on the defensive? Emanuel possesses two vital characteristics: relentlessness and ubiquity.
As they say in sports, he has a motor.
Didyaseemyoped?
He is overflowing with ideas, angles, proposals, and clever remarks. In the pandemic days of 2020 — merely a year after leaving City Hall and already eager to get involved — he contacted former President Joe Biden’s campaign so frequently through calls, texts, and emails that aides had to delegate the task of managing his outreach to pollster John Anzalone.
By the end of Trump’s presidency, while voters may grow tired of seeing him on camera daily — a penchant the president seems determined to maintain — it is hard to envision another Democrat who could navigate nearly every issue with such skill. I joked with colleagues about the poor State Department official overseeing Japan who had to monitor the ambassador’s prolific output, even when he was ostensibly focused on foreign affairs.
Emanuel, despite being steeped in traditional media, is well-suited for a TikTok campaign, where provocation is all but essential.
Yet, Emanuel contrasts sharply with Trump in significant ways.
To borrow from Axelrod, Rahm could be the antidote rather than the echo of a president uninterested in governance, a chaos that ensues from it.
No other living Democrat who hasn't previously run for president would possess a more comprehensive understanding of all facets of the role. In fact, aside from Leon Panetta, who could come close? Emanuel has experience on campaigns, including a presidential bid, served as a senior aide in two White Houses, dabbled in high finance, held three terms in Congress, been a big-city mayor for eight years, and served as envoy to one of the world’s largest economies for nearly four years. And he’s only 65.
He has established relationships with numerous key figures in politics, diplomacy, military affairs, business, and the media, and thanks to his agent brother, he even has ties to Hollywood. It’s not surprising he may think, well, why not me?
The Republican equivalents are James A. Baker III and Dick Cheney, both of whom concluded their public careers with impressive posts.
This raises what might be the most logical rationale for Emanuel’s potential candidacy: Even in defeat, he could still raise his profile for a similar final act, whether at the State Department or the Pentagon.
“If you run for any other office, you win or lose,” Axelrod noted. “But if you run a smart, spirited race for president, you can elevate yourself. So why not jump in the pool?”
As a friend of Emanuel’s pointed out — not that it hadn’t crossed the mind of this fiercely competitive Chicagoan — he would be devastated if he ran for another office and lost.
Even in these early stages, Emanuel displayed an interest in understanding how potential rivals fared at the Democracy Forward conference, inquiring about Pritzker's performance among attendees. Emanuel has maintained an unblemished record, having never lost an election, a status he preserved by not seeking a third term as mayor in 2019, a contest he might have lost.
He had intense confrontations with teachers’ unions in Chicago and left some liberals infuriated by his handling of the Laquan McDonald case, where a Black teenager was shot while fleeing a police officer.
However, if there’s a group that might be less pleased with his representation of the Democratic Party than the left, it’s Republicans, who fear he’d pull his party toward the center.
Rahm has earned the respect and admiration of his Republican colleagues for his skills and determination, and he impressed a younger generation of lawmakers from both parties who visited Tokyo, expecting a tough character and instead discovering goodwill in the form of gifts left in their hotel rooms.
“Rahm Emanuel is the best all-around player for the Democratic Party,” stated Rep. Tom Cole, an Oklahoma Republican who served alongside Emanuel in the House. “Who else has been as successful as a political operative, a party leader, an elected official, a high-level staffer, and a diplomat?”
However, Democratic primaries are not generally swayed by the likes of Tom Cole.
Few names — much like Cher and Madonna, only the first name is required — elicit such visceral disdain on the left as Rahm. He would likely face fierce and determined opposition from progressives, both for his relatively moderate economic views in an era dominated by wealth disparity and for his willingness to negotiate on cultural and identity issues.
Yes, I know, those extreme left voices seem somewhat subdued now. But will they still be by the time three years pass? Even if the influence of progressives diminishes, the opinions of Black voters, the ultimate arbiters of Democratic primaries, will not — and it’s uncertain if Emanuel can win their support.
“I’m not sure people in South Carolina know or care who Rahm Emanuel is,” remarked Gilda Cobb-Hunter, a veteran South Carolina Democratic lawmaker. “His connection to Barack Obama is decades old. We’re in a different time now.”
Indeed, political dynamics shift rapidly.
Consider the period often compared to the current one, the aftermath of 2004. Who would have predicted that reclaiming red states like Indiana and North Carolina — remember the Jesusland map? — would involve nominating a progressive big-city liberal with African roots and a Muslim name? Conventional wisdom at that time was focused on appealing to white Southerners.
A white man nearing 70 who relishes confrontation with the left and candidly discusses hard truths regarding the Democratic brand might seem logical now, but it could also be seen as fighting a past battle after three years of Trump’s chaotic reign.
If he were to run, Emanuel’s greatest challenge could be encapsulated by James Carville’s memorable observation about George H. W. Bush in 1992, captured in the documentary *The War Room*: “He reeks of yesterday.”
As Emanuel concluded at the Democracy Forward conference, a middle-aged attendee seated behind me remarked sarcastically: “Bring back the DLC, yay, I feel like I’m in high school again.”
If Democrats — as they did in 1992 and again in 2008 — ultimately lean toward wanting an outlook steeped in the future rather than nostalgia, it could spell trouble for Emanuel.
Of course, he has played prominent roles with both next-generation Democratic leaders who have won in those elections. He likely could again. The only remaining question is whether he believes it is essential to first run or if he could ascend without committing to a campaign, much like Cheney and Baker, who both considered but never pursued bids.
Yet that assumes he wouldn’t seek to win.
“Nobody,” Rahm told me, “looks at a presidential campaign and does it to say, ‘Well, we’ll see what this feels like.'"
Ian Smith for TROIB News
