As all signs point to a likely win by Sen. Barack Obama Tuesday night, attention to who he may tap for his administration is growing. And although Wall Street is in chaos, rumors of former bankers joining his potential White House staff are beginning to surface. In addition to Dealscape's speculation about former Goldman, Sachs & Co. chief Jon Corzine possibly becoming the next treasury secretary, there is chatter in the mainstream media that Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill., could become Obama's chief of staff.
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There's a lot about this rumor that's a little odd. Not that Emanuel hasn't made himself a major power in Congress -- he's the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House and the head of the Democratic Caucus, not bad for a five-year representative -- and a natural candidate for the Illinois Senate seat Obama would vacate if elected. So, why would Emanuel return to the White House to take a job only a little more senior to one he already had under Bill Clinton?
It's a little known fact that Emanuel did spend some time in Chicago at Wasserstein Perella and Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein working for Bruce Wasserstein, who happens to own The Deal LLC. But it lasted only three years, and that doesn't exactly make Emanuel an investment banker or an expert on, say, credit default swaps. He did, however, make enough money in those years to fuel his return to national politics.
What Emanuel's better known for is his hard-charging aggressiveness and his fundraising skills, which may be helpful as a White House chief of staff, but are even more helpful as a junior senator from Illinois. - Matthew Wurtzel
See story from the Chicago Tribune
See related story about Emanuel's 2006 campaign from The Chicago Tribune
See related story about Corzine from Dealscape
Matthew Wurtzel is the editor of Dealscape.
