Emanuel endorses Obama

Posted: Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:30 PM by Domenico Montanaro
Filed Under: Andrea Mitchell

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell and Mark Murray
NBC NEWS has confirmed that Rep. Rahm Emanuel has endorsed Obama. Emanuel, a former Bill Clinton senior adviser, was the last Illinois holdout.

Emanuel, though, is not only endorsing Obama. Emanuel, a former soldier in the Israeli army and one of the Hill's strongest advocates for Isreal, was with Obama in a meeting with the pro-Israel AIPAC Executive Board.

He is serving as another validator for Obama with the Jewish community. Until today, he was uncommitted, because he had gotten his start with Bill Clinton and served in the Clinton White House -- although as a congressman from Chicago, he has a long relationship with Obama as well.

VIDEO: Rep. Rahm Emanuel talks to NBC's Andrea Mitchell about his decision to endorse Obama.

With the addition of Emanuel, Obama's superdelegate total goes up one.

The NBC NEWS Delegate Counts:
PLEDGED: Obama 1,744 to 1,641
SUPERS: Obama 396.5 to 292
EDWARDS PL.: Obama 21 to 0
OVERALL: Obama 2,161.5 to 1,933

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Comments

Wasn't there a 'sweet sixteen' of senators that were supposed to meet and endorse today? Does anyone find it odd that Pelosi, Reid and Dean have not endorsed?

Just curious. PS. I thought Obama's speech today was amazing and I definitely was emotional last night when he recognized his grandmother. PSS. McCain's speech was a train wreck. How can you be a Reagan foot soldier and now be the agent of change in Washington? I used to respect McCain, but he has sold his soul to the devil since 2000. Now I think he has borderline personality disorder or some other affliction that is as out of touch with reality as the Clinton campaign continues to be today.

Clara Kansas City, MO (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:38 PM)

Thank you our great rep from Illinois Rahm Emanuel. This will help Obama with the jewish vote.

Obama 08

Richard, Chicago (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:39 PM)

Good for you Rahm, I aways knew you had it in you. thanks.

LENI,MICHIGAN (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:42 PM)

Who cares about the suppers??!!! They are history. Both parties are flaws!!Time to move on!!! The movement of Independents has just begun!!! Hillary, run as an Independent!!!

v,ca (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:42 PM)

When is Hillary going to release the hostages??? She's holding all those women, and "hard working White Americans" hostage as she tries to worm her way onto the ticket. Someone should tell her that OBAMA WON, and he also ended up with about 40,000 more votes last night, in the last two primaries.

I am SO looking forward when Obama gives a speech WITHOUT prefacing it with praise and glowing comments about Hillary. She has never once reciprocated the kind words.

NO CLINTONS ON THE TICKET (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:43 PM)

What a suprise. Yet another corrupt pol from Chicago endorsing another corrupt pol from Chicago. Hopefully Rahm didn't drop too many f-bombs, as he's known to do, during his endorsement.

If Obama ever manages to get elected (huge if), then the rest of the US will get a taste of how politics is done in Shy-town. Just to give you a flavor, it's not pretty, the bosses get paid off big time, and taxes are through the roof.

Peter Paul, Chicago (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:43 PM)

Emanuel is one smart cookie! I am glad he finally endorsed Obama. Some of these Washington pols are so timid they make me wonder how anything ever gets done in our fair capital. Obama will change that, I hope, moving our national leaders from the current politics of polarization and intimidation to a politics of mutual respect and cooperation.

I feel greatly disturbed by the mindless vitriol espoused by some of you purporting to be HRC supporters. I suspect some of you are not, but rather have been hired by the Republicans to stir up hatred and resentment among the Democrats. If you really are HRC supporters, you should be ashamed of yourselves. To say that the Obama campaign and supporters "stole" the primary win is nonsense. Just as fictional as HRC's false claim to have "won more popular votes" in a primary that did not even count a good number of the popular votes, especially those in caucus states, which despite the Clinton's claims to the contrary, are perfectly valid elections as stated in the Party rules. I am disappointed by Mrs. Clinton's seeming inability to acknowledge defeat, but I am not at all surprised. It will be interesting to see how she and her misguided advisors spin this one.

Thanks Rahm!!! --- CA (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:44 PM)

WHO CARES?

Fence sitter! Kennedy trasher!

Maybe I'm a stupid novice to the world of politics, and if so you'll let me know, but what an anti climactic endorsement worth diddly.

donna (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:46 PM)

"Wasn't there a 'sweet sixteen' of senators that were supposed to meet and endorse today? Does anyone find it odd that Pelosi, Reid and Dean have not endorsed?"

I wonder if they are waiting for Clinton to concede in order to move past that story, have some added momentum, be able to be the exclamation point signifying it's over, he's won, let's move on?

fl dem (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:46 PM)

Hey.... am I the only one who thinks that McCain's head looks like a giant marshmallow floating around in green jello with that ugly new green backdrop he's using? I wonder who selected that gawdawful new color. I can see where he stole the tag lines from, just like Clinton took Obama's "Yes we can" and started using "Yes we will." Now McCain's going with Obama's "change you can believe in." Apparently, McCain has no original ideas, and a very, very bad graphic artist.

CP (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:48 PM)

Down with Rahm Emanual too! Raaurgh!

Hillary Clinton or NOBODY!

It has to be Hillary because: nothing that makes a bit of sense!

Mad (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:48 PM)

Emanuel did the right thing. Now if can convince Obama if hires Hillary for veep he better hire a food taster as well.

Elmer (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:49 PM)

What will be interesting is when people realize that implementing a portion of the programs Obama wants is that health care will be run as well as the post office, the price of gas will double from where it is now (got to pay for being green somehow), your taxes will increase across the board, we'll be less safe when the Patriot Act is abolished, unemployment will rise (why work when you get all the benefits for free?), illegal immigration will soar (Fence? What fence?). Teachers working 8 months out of the year will make more then engineers (you know, like at Boeing or in the oil industry) who work 12 months plus another 3-4 months of OT.

It's going to be a fun time.

Charley Napper, Columbus, Ohio (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:50 PM)

Why is an American citizen allowed to serve in the Israeli army and then even be allowed to become a US Senator - seems like a conflict of interest to me!

Jamil - Dearborn, MI (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 12:55 PM)

congrats Obama, good luck in November. Now I will take my backseal as the men of this country will allow.Maybe Obama could give HRC a small insignificant position to keep us pacified.

JB kcmo (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:02 PM)

I have seen releases on Salazar and Harkin (AP) and Phil Bredesen (TN gov), Gray Sasser (TN Dem Party), and one other (per The Tennessean). I think there are a few more out there. I know how tired you guys are, but I'd love to see evidence that the Party is telling Hillary to end this, which is how I view the endorsements today.

Hillary Rosen had an interesting article re not being a "bargaining chip". I hope more Dems feel that way.

Marihelen (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:03 PM)

These are things the Obama-bots want to hear. It will help their cause to get their candidate elected. Sad fact is that he is equally worse as Bush in a different way being a tree-hugger and appeaser.

Joe Vidden (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:06 PM)

As long as Obama continues to support the state of Israel, I would think most Jews would support him. It is important to note that Jews like other groups are not monolithic. I am sure there are some Jews who would rather vote for McCain.

S.B. Stein E.B. NJ (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:07 PM)

Rahm Emanuel was one of the major heroes of the 06 Election. It's reassuring to know he is behind Senator Obama. Doubling reassuring that he stood up with our Candidate at the AIPAC Executive Board Meeting today. Last night was exhilarating, Today the work begins. God Speed Senator Obama and all of us who support him.

Stephen Palm Springs (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:08 PM)

Sen. Obama is definitely to be congratulated. I'm certain he will lead our party to victory.

Now that he has achieved the magic number I do find it interesting that none of the pundits who were saying it would be a tragedy if the super delegates were the ones that decided the nominee (if they went for Sen. Clinton) are saying that its a tragedy that it was the super delegates...not elected delegates...that gave Sen. Obama the victory. Curious??

Jim, Chicago, IL (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:09 PM)

Thank you, Mr. Emanuel.

I think it's time to turn the page! Visit HillaryClinton.com to tell her to drop out of the race!

http://midwestmoms.blogspot.com

Midwest Mom, Illiana (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:22 PM)

I am not a Bargaining Chip. I am a Democrat. These are the words of former Clinton Spokesperson Hillary Rosen and she speaks for me as well. The primary is over and as one of Hillary Clinton's primary voters it is time to start the general election. The policy differences between Obama and McCain are too vast to allow emotions to get in the way.

Stacy, Virginia (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:26 PM)

Nancy Pelosi for Vice President, John Edwards for Attorney General.Obama should easily win the GE.

Hillary Clinton in capacity will not only cost votes but also the election for Obama.

Joseph John, Calgary, Alberta (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:31 PM)

Hillary, run as an independent. 18 million people voted for you. The democratci party did not listen.

janice, stockton, ca (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:34 PM)

So what? The DNC has lost the respect of many long time members. Time to refocus our support on the moderate candidate.

McCain represents the middle. Go McCain

New Indy (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:34 PM)

Rahm Emanuel. Just heard Andrea Mitchell introduce Rahm as being in the Israeli Army. Wrong. Unless he served while working with the Clinton presidency when it began. I served with him as a volunteer in Israel which he left after only 2 weeks.
JW, NC

Janet Weinberg, Efland, NC (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:51 PM)

HRC and the New Mammy
HRC has duped her supporters by convincing them that she is the great and only female hope. In effect, HRC conveniently manipulated her followers by positioning herself as the Miss Ann and her supporters as Mammy. http://www.ferris.edu/jimcrow/mammies/more/salve.htm
HRC tapped the power Jim Crowism by utilizing sexism and racism to condition her followers to hate her fellow democratic contender Mr. Obama. What a lethal combination, had it worked!

Now look at HRC, she has declared herself ringmaster of 17m (using fuzzy math) puppet-voters that she intends to use as a pawn to extort her way to a vice president’s position. American women, reclaim your minds and stop behaving like a programmed Mammies, after all she was a fictional character created by people whose interest was to subjugate a race and gender.

ariana98 (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:58 PM)

Israeli security issues?

In honor of Rahm Emanuel, let's have a town hall meeting in Chicago and talk about THAT.

Obama 08/12

Anna Molly (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:59 PM)

Good man, Rahm! Keep spreadin' the news to those pro-Israel types. Let's let EVERYBODY know that Obama is president for EVERYONE!!

Class Warrior, D.C. (Sent Wednesday, June 04, 2008 1:59 PM)

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