Give-and-Take With Emanuel Advances President's Agenda

Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel's expertise and dealmaking are key components in President Obama's legislative strategy. (By Melina Mara -- The Washington Post)
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"I was never a big Obama guy, but when I heard on the news that Rahm was going to be chief of staff, I thought, of all people I've known in my life, he was born to be chief of staff to a great president," Berry said. "He's young and tough and smart, and can be mean when necessary. He doesn't waste energy on foolish things."

In Berry, Emanuel saw a veteran lawmaker "who felt like his voice wasn't being heard," something he understood from his combined Hill and White House experience. "I know these guys; I know what makes them tick. I know their districts. It's not the first time I've ever talked to them," Emanuel said.

In the Senate, several prominent Democrats, including Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (Mont.), had taken a stand against special budget instructions to protect Obama's health-care, education and global warming initiatives from a filibuster. Both parties had used the "reconciliation" shortcut in recent years to move contentious bills through a chamber known for parliamentary pitfalls. But Baucus was seeking large bipartisan consensus for health-care reform, and he worried that reconciliation would offend potential GOP allies.

Emanuel, a former member of the House Budget Committee, saw a way to meet Baucus halfway. Reconciliation instructions could be added but would not take effect until fall, giving Republicans time to show interest in compromise. Also, the language would cover only health care and education. Emanuel concluded that including Obama's cap-and-trade system to combat climate change "was a bridge too far." It would ask too much of vulnerable Democrats, given their fears about creating higher consumer electricity costs.

"We decided we would let the process work, but we wouldn't hold the process hostage" to Republican obstruction, Emanuel said. House leaders had been considering reconciliation and added the instructions to their budget. Before lawmakers left town last week for a spring recess, even Baucus conceded that reconciliation language in the conference report is probably a done deal.

Every morning at 8:45, long before the House and Senate come to order, Emanuel hosts a meeting in his White House office to review congressional business. Attendees include Schiliro and his congressional team, along with representatives of the policy, political and press offices. Emanuel also sits down once a week with a different committee chairman and ranking member to catch up on business before their panel. Obama attends at least part of those sessions. Emanuel brings in all the major groups: the Blue Dog budget hawks, the moderate New Democrats, the politically skittish House freshman class. One night when the House Budget Committee was working late, Emanuel sent over eight chocolate cakes and a batch of cookies. House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) summoned him to a recent committee meeting to prod Democrats to move faster on financial regulatory reform. "I thought it was important for them to hear it from someone they know and trust," Frank said.

Emanuel speaks with House and Senate leadership aides multiple times every day, and consults with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) at least four times a week. During a recent Senate debate, Reid asked Emanuel to lean on three Democratic holdouts. When Emanuel reported back with a single convert, Reid chastised him that "batting .333 isn't good enough for the major leagues" of Congress. Emanuel responded with a string of expletives but tried again and produced a second vote.

Even GOP lawmakers praised the White House attention. "He always takes my calls," said Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (Maine), a moderate who is wooed by Democrats on every major bill. She even considered voting for the budget.

When Snowe heard that Obama would visit Turkey at the end of his first overseas trip as president, the Greek American senator called Emanuel to ask that Obama meet with the Greek Orthodox patriarch in Istanbul.

Already on the itinerary, the chief of staff assured her. Hours after Emanuel returned to the White House last week, he was working on another sale, telling himself, "I better call Olympia to tell her how it went."