Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel considering 2028 presidential run
The latest: In an interview with Crain's Chicago Business 's Greg Hinz, Emanuel said, "I'm looking at the (Democratic) field, and most importantly, what I have to contribute."
Context: Emanuel has been vocal about the future of the Democratic Party after returning from his ambassadorship to Japan under former President Joe Biden, but this is the most he's said publicly about vying for the White House.
Zoom in: He's pushing the party leaders to get back to "kitchen table issues" instead of focusing on more progressive issues and political correctness," he told Crain's.
"We have to go back to how we won. Focus on middle-class economics and values."
Flashback: Emanuel worked as a policy advisor under President Clinton beginning in 1993, before moving to Congress to represent Chicago's North Side. After orchestrating the Democrats' push to win the House in 2006, he left to join President Obama as his White House chief of staff in 2009.
All this was before running the city of Chicago for eight years, before choosing not to run for a third term in 2019.
Yes, but: Many progressive politicians don't see eye to eye with Emanuel, who has been criticized for his handling of the police murder of Laquan McDonald. He was accused of blocking the release of the video that captured the murder, which happened while Emanuel was mounting his reelection campaign in 2014.
He was also criticized for closing 50 neighborhood schools.
Reality check: The acrimony isn't just local. Progressives inside the Democratic Party, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), sought to block Emanuel's ambassadorship in 2021 because of the McDonald cover-up allegations, adding it "should be flatly disqualifying for any position of public trust, let alone representing the United States as an ambassador."
Between the lines: That bad blood may be why Emanuel is on the hunt to reclaim the Democratic party. After the loss to President Trump in November, Emanuel has tried to rally the party back to the middle.
The intrigue: Emanuel will be watching closely as Illinois Governor JB Pritzker is also a potential candidate, as well as California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
22 minutes ago
- The Hill
Huizenga passes on Michigan Senate run
Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) said on Wednesday he was passing on a Senate run in the Great Lakes State after Republicans had voiced concerns of a primary between the congressman and former Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.). 'After careful consideration with Natalie and my family, as well as in consultation with President Trump, I have decided against a bid for U.S. Senate in Michigan,' Huizenga said in a statement. 'I am proud of our effort and am grateful for the outpouring of support and encouragement I received from Michiganders across our great state,' he continued. However, Huizenga was not definitive on what his next move would be, saying he looks forward to announcing his 'future plans' later this year. If he had decided on a Senate bid, Huizenga would have faced off against Rogers, an establishment favorite, who came within less than a point of defeating Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) in last year's competitive Senate race. Rogers received the backing of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-N.D.) and National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-S.C.) following his 2026 campaign launch in April. Last week, Rogers' campaign said he raised over $1.5 million in the second quarter of 2025. Unlike Republicans, Michigan Democrats are facing a contentious primary battle between establishment favorite Haley Stevens (D-Mich.), state Sen. Mallory McMorrow (D), and former progressive gubernatorial candidate Abdul El-Sayed.
The Hill
22 minutes ago
- The Hill
White House plays whack-a-mole with Epstein reports
Happy Wednesday. If you listen carefully, you can hear senators and staffers singing a lament as the House splits early for the August recess. In today's issue: Trump unveils AI plan White House responds to latest Epstein story Administration will answer questions at 1 p.m. Republican leaders eager to leave town Democrats disagree on shutdown strategy 🤖️ IN THE WHITE HOUSE 'Hey, look at this shiny thing over here!': It's all about artificial intelligence (AI) at the White House today. The Trump administration released its AI Action Plan. President Trump will then give a keynote address later today at an AI summit. 💻 Watch Trump's 5 p.m. remarks Let me walk you through this 'AI Action Plan': It would scale back regulation of technology to make the U.S. the global leader in AI. The plan has three pillars: 1. Boost American innovation 2. Build out data center infrastructure 3. Promote American technology abroad This should give the Trump team a welcome distraction from the unrelenting news surrounding the Jeffrey Epstein saga. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has a press briefing scheduled for 1 p.m., when we can expect lots of questions about Epstein. There could be some fireworks. 💻 Watch it live CNN dug up some new photos of Trump and Epstein together: CNN's Andrew Kaczynski and Em Steck uncovered more photos and video footage highlighting President Trump 's past relationship with disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. First: The investigative journalists found photos of Epstein attending Trump's 1993 wedding to Marla Maples, noting 'Epstein's attendance at the ceremony at the Plaza Hotel was not widely known until now.' Second: They found raw footage of Trump and Epstein laughing and talking at a 1999 Victoria's Secret fashion event. 📹📸 See the photos and footage What did Trump have to say about the reporting?: 'In a brief call with CNN on Tuesday, President Trump, asked about the wedding photos, responded, 'You've got to be kidding me,' before repeatedly calling CNN 'fake news' and hanging up.' His communications director, Steven Cheung, gave CNN a statement claiming they were 'out-of-context frame grabs.' Cheung also reiterated that Trump 'kicked [Epstein] out of his club for being a creep.' 📹 Watch Kaczynski discuss the new reporting on 'Erin Burnett Out Front' 💡 Why this matters: These are not the first photos of Trump and Epstein together. But the trickle of new reports about Trump and Epstein's past relationship is forcing the White House to spend time explaining the dynamics. Trump sued The Wall Street Journal's parent company last week over the newspaper's reporting of an alleged birthday letter Trump sent Epstein in 2003. ➤ TIDBIT: We reported Tuesday that top DOJ official Todd Blanche will meet with Epstein's accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell. Well, The Hill's Zach Schonfeld and Ella Lee point out in their newsletter The Gavel that Blanche is friends with Maxwell's lawyer. Sign up for their newsletter 🌻 ON CAPITOL HILL IMHO, I think everyone could use a breather from D.C.: Tensions have been high in both the Republican and Democratic caucuses on Capitol Hill — and it sure feels like everyone needs an August recess to cool off. The House is leaving town early — last votes will happen at 3:30 p.m. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is threatening to cut the recess short. I can't remember the last time there was a recess without a threat to make everyone stay in town… Let's start with Republicans: The Jeffrey Epstein files have caused quite the tension for Republicans on Capitol Hill. Democrats tried pinning them down by forcing uncomfortable votes related to the Epstein files. Republicans wanted nothing to do with it, so Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) shut down all House floor business and is beginning August recess a day early. Drama: Johnson handpicked his allies to be on the powerful House Rules Committee. Well, those allies rebelled. They want Johnson to bring up a vote to release the Epstein files, even though it would be nonbinding. But it's unclear whether the measure could pass, even though it was crafted by Republicans. The Hill's Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell wrote a helpful explainer on the drama. I think it's safe to say that Republican leaders will be happy to leave town amid the Epstein saga. Now, the Democratic tea: Senate Democrats held a lunch meeting Tuesday to decide how to handle the upcoming government funding fight — it lasted for hours and was quite tense. They debated how to have leverage in the funding battle but are deeply divided. Keep in mind: Republicans *need* Democrats' help to avoid a shutdown, so they do have some leverage. But as history has shown us, the party that causes a government shutdown almost always gets blamed. Democrats say Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) is 'afraid' of getting blamed, but some also warn that caving to Republicans' demands could backfire. Read Alexander Bolton's reporting on Senate Democrats' disagreements. COMING UP The House and Senate are in. President Trump is in Washington. (All times EST) 1 p.m.: White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt briefs reporters. 💻 Livestream 2 p.m.: Two Senate votes to end debate. More votes are expected later today. 📆 Today's agenda 2 p.m.: Former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) spoke with the podcast 'Sources Say' with Juliegrace Brufke before reporting to jail. 💻 Watch 3 p.m.: The U.N. Security Council meets to discuss the war in Gaza. 💻 Livestream 3:30 p.m.: First and last House votes. 📆 Today's agenda 5 p.m.: Trump signs executive orders and delivers remarks at an AI summit. 🍋 An excellent reason to celebrate: Today is National Lemon Day! I stumbled upon The New York Times Cooking's list of its ' 17 most lemony recipes ' and … holy moly. 😍 🚗 Uber will let women request each other for rides: Uber announced it is testing a new feature to let female drivers and riders avoid being paired with men. 🍂 Do you follow the Gregorian calendar or the Starbucks-ian one?: Starbucks's fall menu will debut on Aug. 26 this year, a bit later than last year. I'm intrigued by the new Pecan Oatmilk Cortado. : Republicans want to name it after first lady Melania Trump.
Boston Globe
22 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Gabbard releases new documents targeting Obama administration
The Obama administration, Gabbard wrote, was 'promoting the LIE that Vladimir Putin and the Russian government helped President Trump win the 2016 election.' Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Gabbard has won praise from Trump for her investigation into the intelligence findings and spoke at length about how the 2016 assessment was part of a witch hunt against him. Trump has been under sharp criticism for his handling of documents related to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, and his attacks on the Obama administration appear to be part of a distract-and-deflect strategy. Advertisement Gabbard reiterated her assertion that the intelligence assessment was intended to undermine Trump's presidency. 'In doing so, they conspired to subvert the will of the American people,' she wrote, 'working with their partners in the media to promote the lie, in order to undermine the legitimacy of President Trump, essentially enacting a years-long coup against him.' Advertisement The House report found that most of the judgments made by the intelligence community in 2016 were sound. But it argued that the work was rushed, as a recent tradecraft analysis by the CIA also found. The assessment that Putin had favored Trump did not follow the 'professional criteria' of the other findings, the House report said. The findings were at odds with a bipartisan series of Senate reports that later affirmed the work of the CIA and the other intelligence agencies on the 2016 assessment. The judgment about Putin's preference, the report said, was based on a single source who was biased against the Russian government. The raw intelligence was fragmentary and lacked context, the report added. The overall view of the House Intelligence Committee was well known, and members frequently took issue with the finding. But the full report with details of the CIA's work on the 2016 intelligence assessment has not been released. Trump administration officials have maintained that the 2016 intelligence review was tainted by unverified information in a dossier prepared by a former British intelligence officer, Christopher Steele. The so-called Steele dossier was mentioned in a classified annex to the report, but former officials said the CIA did not take it seriously and did not allow it to influence their assessment. Few if any of the claims in the dossier about Trump have been verified in the ensuing years. Attacking the conclusions of the 2016 assessment that Russia sought to denigrate Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee, and boost Trump has been a hobby horse of some of the president's supporters. Republicans have long taken particular aim at the idea that the Kremlin favored Trump, arguing instead that Russia was simply trying to sow chaos or undermine democratic institutions. Advertisement The attacks on the documents have intensified in recent weeks as first the CIA and then Gabbard's office have raised questions about the effort. Bipartisan Senate reviews have validated the CIA's work in 2016, and John H. Durham, a special prosecutor appointed by Attorney General William Barr during Trump's first term, also failed to find any evidence undermining the intelligence agencies' conclusions. While Trump's Republican supporters criticized the assessment during his first term, Trump focused much of his ire on Robert Mueller, the former FBI director appointed to investigate any ties between the Trump campaign and Russian officials. Since Trump's return to office, the CIA and Gabbard have tried to sow doubts about the assessment. Gabbard has contended that the intelligence work in 2016 was not just flawed but also amounted to a conspiracy against Trump. On Friday, Gabbard issued a report that she said exposed a 'treasonous conspiracy,' claiming senior Obama administration officials had pressured the intelligence committee to change its views on Russian meddling. The documents presented showed that the Obama administration was eager to quickly complete its work but not that the intelligence agencies altered their conclusions. Trump has praised Gabbard, after criticizing her work just weeks earlier. Referring to Gabbard's report, Trump said Tuesday that while in office, President Barack Obama 'was trying to lead a coup.' Gabbard has said she wants to end the weaponization of intelligence. She has condemned politicians for what she sees as the use of selective bits of intelligence against their opponents. While she has portrayed the release of the documents as a corrective to the errors and missteps of the Obama administration, former officials and even some allies of Gabbard have said her effort to throw a lifeline to Trump is an example of the very politicization she has vowed to stamp out. Advertisement This article originally appeared in .
