Back Story on Obama's Inner Circle

Worth Clicking: Blasts from the past wound Romney

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February 25, 2010

Back Story on Obama's Inner Circle

On rumors that key White House advisers Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod and Valerie Jarret might soon be on their way out of the administration, Lynn Sweet reports Emanuel "has said he only promised to stay in the White House for two years. Axelrod has talked about only staying two years. Jarrett is in for the long haul."

"The Obama presidency is a lifetime achievement for Axelrod and Jarrett, the realization of their own dreams and aspirations. They have been with Obama since the early days of his political career. Emanuel, on the other hand, was not part of the presidential campaign, was drafted for the Obama White House and he -- unlike Jarrett and Axelrod -- gave up something that was very important to him -- his House seat and his independence as a political figure on track to being Speaker of the House -- in order to answer the call for a second stint in the White House."

"Axelrod and Jarrett have hit a career high with President Obama. For Emanuel, this tour of duty in the White House is a sidetrack from a path he was on to realize his own ambitions. The Emanuel camp I am told sees all this back and forth about his standing as absurd."

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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February 25, 2010