Laura Washington: Is there room in 2028 for both Gov. JB Pritzker and Rahm Emanuel?

Chicago Tribune

4 days ago

It could be a presidential two-fer for Illinois. Gov. JB Pritzker and Rahm Emanuel, former U.S. ambassador and Chicago mayor, are feeding widespread speculation that they will mount presidential runs in 2028.
Illinois is the land where presidential history is made. Abraham Lincoln hailed from the Prairie State, and Barack Obama is a former community organizer and lawyer from who Chicago became the nation's first Black president.
Now, two prominent Democrats may be aiming to build on that legacy. Both are Jewish, which could break another barrier, to put the first Jew to take the White House.
Both possess credible resumes for the job. Yet both are long shots.
It's years until the next presidential primary, but if Pritzker and Emanuel join the race, Illinois watchers will be treated to a really big show.
Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor, congressman, White House chief of staff and Democratic Party uber-fundraiser, has returned from his post as the U.S. ambassador to Japan and is calling for a Democratic Party shakeup.
Last week, The Wall Street Journal previewed a possible Emanuel run. 'The Democrat isn't hiding his political ambitions, openly considering presidential run and positioning himself as the party's savior,' according to the Journal.
To win voters back, Emanuel argues, Democrats must be quintessentially pragmatic and get its priorities straight, instead of catering to interest groups.
Emanuel has been staking out his political territory. 'I am done with the discussion of locker rooms, I am done with the discussion of bathrooms, and we better start having a conversation about the classroom,' Emanuel said recently, referring to new national research that shows that most eighth graders can't read at grade level. He made the comments in Washington at a conference hosted by Democracy Forward.
Many hate — and fear — Emanuel. 'Rhambo' was a key, hard-charging operative in the 1992 election of Bill Clinton and a mega player in Congress, where he represented Illinois' 5th Congressional District. He is credited with forging the Democrats' 2006 midterm victories and has an innate ability to go for the jugular.
When President Joe Biden tapped Emanuel to serve as ambassador to Japan in 2021, it came despite heated opposition from his party's progressive wing, who dubbed Emanuel 'Mayor One Percent,' viewing him as an elitist centrist whose mayoral tenure was anathema to their dearest causes.
Chicago has yet to recover from his mayoral decision to close nearly 50 Chicago schools and the city's mental health clinics. They accuse him of covering up the murder of Laquan McDonald, shot 16 times by the Chicago police.
Emanuel is ahead of Pritzker on national credentials, but short on likability. He lacks a current elected position to showcase his governing skills.
Pritzker, an incumbent governor, is popular with Illinois Democrats. He leans progressive but is not afraid to take positions that could alienate the left.
Pritzker has been appearing at Democratic Party fundraisers in key states for months. The billionaire businessman and two-term governor is touting his record back home and sowing the seeds of a national campaign with his big bucks to Democratic candidates and causes.
He is also a taking a hard line on President Donald Trump.
Last month, Pritzker sparked headlines with a combative keynote speech at a Democratic Party fundraiser in New Hampshire, a key presidential primary state.
He called out fellow politicians for a weak resistance to Trump, declaring, 'Never before in my life have, I called for mass protests, for mobilization, for disruption. But I am now. These Republicans cannot know a moment of peace.'
If Emanuel and Pritzker run, they will be competing to be the leader who will stand up to — and beat — Trump and his GOP. They could also be on a political collision course.
Their differing approaches and rhetoric reflect the ongoing debate among Democrats. Is fighting Trump the way to go, or should the party eschew culture wars and get back to basics? Go after Trump, tooth and nail, or move to the center to woo back disenchanted Democrats and independents?
'Frankly, I doubt that Rahm will run, but I guess (if he did) he will have to attack the governor as too liberal, or even woke,' says Don Rose, the longtime political consultant and astute watcher of Illinois politics.
The GOP will dismiss the pair as being tax-and-spend liberals.
In their own party, Emanuel, 65, is an old warrior whose time as a wise man may have passed. Pritzker, 60, is a fresher face, but is little known outside of Illinois.
They share a robust, deep blue political family in Illinois. Where will those allegiances land?
Is there enough room on the national stage for either, or both? Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email [e-mail].