Obama’s Chief of Staff to Step Down and Run for Mayor of Chicago

Added by Gary Dunn on October 1, 2010

Though White House would not confirm, speculations are high that Rahm Emanuel, the Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama, might step down from his position to run for the Mayor of Chicago. The official announcement from Obama might come this Friday.

In an interim arrangement, Emanuel’s position might be taken by Pete Rouse who has been a long-serving aide and senior advisor to Obama, before a permanent replacement is decided on.

Though Robert Gibbs, spokesman of the White House, did not confirm anything, he spoke very highly of the loyalty and trust that Pete Rouse brings, further saying that whether Rouse or whoever replaces Rahm, will have his own style of working.

Rahm Emanuel, the 50-year old native from Chicago, had been one of the most influential and powerful people on Obama’s team.  He had wide control over Obama’s appointments, and the President and Gibbs would hold a meeting with Emanuel at the beginning and end of each day.

Emanuel had worked with President Bill Clinton in the 1990’s and served as a member of the House of Representatives and had always expressed his interest in running for mayor. However, his path to the election as mayor will not be an easy one and he would need to start by obtaining 12,500 signatures by November 22, 2010 to qualify as a mayoral candidate.

As a permanent replacement to Emanuel, Obama is most likely to consider an insider like Tom Donilon, the Deputy National Security Adviser, or Ron Klain, the Chief of Staff to Vice President Joe Biden. However, Emanuel’s separation might lead to a staff restructure and shuffle after the congressional elections of November.