Obama Shakes Up White House Staff

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright Septembre 26, 2010
All Rights Reserved.                                

             Throwing Washington for a loop, the White House announced that President Barack Obama’s chief strategist David Axelrod would return to Chicago to “work” on the president’s reelection campaign.  While it’s tempting to take things at face value, Axelrod’s expected departure sometime after the first of the year amounts to an earthquake, a major shift in the administration’s tectonic plates.  Axelrod orchestrated Obama’s successful presidential campaign, where most pundits expected the Clinton machine to help Hillary prevail.  When Hillary’s numbers didn’t add up during the primaries handing Obama a stunning victory, Axelrod’s political IQ shot off the page.  His departure now to work in Chicago on the president’s reelection is no promotion.  He can easily run Obama’s reelection bid out of the White House or any other convenient location as chief strategist.

            Axelrod helped fashion Barack’s political agenda that resulted in the 49-year-old president dropping from a commanding 70% approval rating to today’s 45%.  Together with other Democratic forces, Axelrod pushed Obama’s national health care overall that won not one Republican vote, becoming the most partisan legislation in U.S. history.  He pulled out all the stops, believing the prevailing wisdom that if Obama couldn’t pull off his health care reform, Democrats would have hell to pay at the polls in the midterm elections.  Truth be told, Axelrod’s agenda cost Obama valuable approval ratings and now earns him his walking papers.  “Two years, people start of leave.  The burn themselves out.  They work very hard.  They have jobs they can’t refuse,” said presidential historian and Brooking Institute’s Stephen Hess,” failing to recognize how poorly things have gone for Obama.

            Without question, Axelrod would have stayed put had he produced better results.  Suggesting he’s “burned out” fails to see the steep uphill slog faced by Obama due to the weak economy.  Instead of focusing on jobs creation, Axelrod and the White House team thought they’d get more bang for their buck railroading national health care, nearly single-handedly giving rise to the Tea Party movement, a Reagan-like rebellion against big government spending.  Axelrod’s wisdom handed Barack’s right wing enemies red meat, whetting extremists' appetites looking for more ammunition.  All the best-and-brightest led by Axelrod inside the White House energized the conservative base to attack the Obama agenda.  Instead of delivering promised bipartisanship, it didn’t take long for Axelrod & Co. to worsen the bitter partisan divide Barack promised to correct running for president.

            White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel also announced he’ll leave the White to run for Chicago mayor with Mayor Richard Daley announcing his retirement.  Emanuel was also instrumental in lining up Democratic votes for the president’s health care reform.  Unlike Axelrod, Emanuel’s expected departure isn’t tied to Barack’s  approval ratings, something attached to Axelrod.  “Is he just drawing the wagons around him?  Or is he reaching out in which he is saying, he I think there are different ways to do it.  May be we need a different agenda.  Maybe I made some mistakes,” said Hess, getting a lot closer to the real reason behind Axelord’s exit.  Given the sluggish economy, White House officials knew that it’s going to be tough sledding before the next presidential sweepstakes.  Obama will need to create some good blood and positive perceptions before the next election cycle.

            Emanuel’s departure makes perfect sense when you consider the likely change in House leadership.  With Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) slated to take over as House Speaker next January, Emanuel would  be the worst choice as chief of staff.  He worked well with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) but would only hurt Obama’s legislative agenda under GOP rule.  If Obama wants to get reelected, he should replace his chief of staff with someone that gets along with Republicans.  If Barack picks former Clinton administration, chief of staff John Podesta or Erskine Bowles, he’d shoot himself in the foot.  His close friend and White House counselor Valerie Jarrett would also be a mistake.  When Defense Secretary Robert Gates bows out next year, he should consider either former Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) or former NATO Supreme Commander Gen. Wesley J. Clark.

            Axelrod’s departure directly contradicts his public statements Sept. 8 on ABC’s “This Week” with Christiane Amanpour, where he insisted he wasn’t going anywhere.  His expected exit indicates a White House adrift, unable to reverse the downward slide in Barack’s approval ratings.  Whether he works on Obama’s reelection campaign or not, his White House departure reflects disappointment with his results.  Pushing Barack’s health care overhaul won a short-lived partisan battle but lost the overall PR war.  Today’ dissatisfaction with Barack stems not only from a bad economy but a recognition of more ugly partisanship.  Passing health care without one Republican vote backfired on White House strategists.  Whoever replaces Axelrod and Emanuel will have to strike a more bipartisan tone or face inevitable problems in 2012.  Barack needs to prove he can reach out across the aisle.

About the Author  

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.