President Joe Biden is reportedly considering former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel for a high-profile ambassadorship—potentially to China, according to NBC News.
Becoming the U.S. ambassador to Japan is another option that the Biden administration officials have discussed with Emanuel.
Emanuel—who became White House chief of staff when Barack Obama became president—is considered a well-known figure in Democratic politics who would bring notoriety to an ambassadorship, NBC News stated. And, Politico noted, Emanuel also has drawn scorn from the left for suppressing the 2014 dashcam footage of a Chicago police officer killing Laquan McDonald until after he had won re-election. (He was mayor during 2011 to 2019.)
Biden is considering him for a key diplomatic position as administration officials look to fill dozens of vacancies in capitals across the world, with decisions expected in coming weeks.
Another person familiar with the discussions said Emanuel's name had also been floated internally for U.S. ambassador to Israel. But this idea, this person said, was nixed because of Emanuel's notoriously rocky relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu—dating to Emanuel's time as Obama's chief of staff.
