Felsenthal Files

09/18/12

Nationally Ambitious Rahm Opens Up to the New York Times

The savvy politician gives personal details to the Times, likely betting that he’ll emerge from this mess of a strike as the reasonable reform-minded man—both on the local and national stages...

Posted at 03:18 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

09/17/12

Bob Woodward's 'The Price of Politics' and Rahm's Behavior, Then and Now

Reading Bob Woodward’s new book, The Price of Politics, this weekend—while the battle between Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis raged—I was reminded that the White House Rahm who tried to bully and bulldoze Republicans and Blue Dog Democrats into supporting his boss’s agenda was essentially the same City Hall Rahm who—although not sitting at the negotiating table—was the city’s public face of the ugly lead-up to the ongoing teachers strike...

Posted at 03:18 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

09/14/12

David Brooks Still Entranced by Rahm, and Gets the Chicago Teachers Strike Very Wrong

The New York Times columnist's infatuation with Rahm Emanuel blinds him to the realities of the strike—Karen Lewis is outfoxing the new mayor, who's caving just like his predecessor.

Posted at 03:07 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (2)

09/11/12

How the Chicago Teachers Strike Could Affect Obama, Democrats

For a few hours this morning, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post all had something in common on this the 11th anniversary of 9/11: Their top sections featured stories of the poisonous battle between Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Public Schools versus Karen Lewis and the Chicago Teachers Union. The result is a huge stain on Chicago...

Posted at 02:46 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

09/05/12

Chicago Stars at the DNC

Chicago’s starring role at this week’s Democratic National Convention in Charlotte was the opposite of its role at the GOP convention in Tampa. At the latter, the city was a symbol of everything corrupt and thuggish about urban politics. Through the DNC lens, Chicago was once again was the shining city on the lake that the world adored on Election Night 2008...

Posted at 04:44 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

09/04/12

Obama and His Daughters: The Role of Sasha and Malia in Election 2012

The Obamas mostly have always maintained a strict zone of privacy when it comes to their daughters, but the president has occasionally shifted the zone to gain political advantage...

Posted at 12:52 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (2)

08/31/12

The Illinois Delegation—and Its No-Shows—at the RNC in Tampa

Illinois couldn’t be bluer, so not surprisingly we were nowhere near the stage at the just concluded Republican National Convention in Tampa. Still, there were some key attendees—and a few interesting no-shows—at the GOP fest.

Posted at 02:01 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (2)

08/29/12

Paul Ryan and Rahm Emanuel— Friendlier than You Might Think?

No matter the fate of the Romney ticket this November, Paul Ryan—who is scheduled to deliver the biggest speech of his life on Wednesday night in Tampa—is sure to try down the line for the nomination for the top spot. And my guess is that Congressman Ryan and our own Mayor Rahm Emanuel could end up running against each other for president—if not in 2016, then in 2020. Here, a look at what the two men have in common...

Posted at 01:23 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)

08/24/12

Joe Ricketts and the New Anti-Barack Film, '2016: Obama's America'

Rahm Emanuel threw a hissy fit in May when he learned of the involvement of Joe Ricketts, whose children own the Cubs, in a proposed harshly anti-Obama ad that revisited the Rev. Jeremiah Wright controversy of the 2008 election. Ricketts is back, this time as an investor in a new Barack-bashing film called 2016: Obama's America.

Posted at 11:12 AM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (3)

08/21/12

New Politico Book, 'Obama's Last Stand,' Describes West Wing Chicago Dysfunction

The popular political website’s senior White House reporter has compiled lots of juicy tidbits in Obama’s Last Stand—many from unnamed sources—about the president’s insiders. Among the Chicago players mentioned are Rahm Emanuel, Bill Daley, Valerie Jarrett, and David Axelrod...

Posted at 02:58 PM in Felsenthal Files | Permalink | Comments (0)