Rahm Emanuel Biography

Fast Facts

• Served as a senior advisor to the Clinton administration from 1993 until 1998, during which time he headed initiatives involving NAFTA, health care and more
• Earned his master's degree in communication from Northwestern University after studying liberal arts as an undergraduate at Sarah Lawrence College
• Forced to amputate part of his right middle finger after deeply slicing it while working at Arby's as a teenager
• Won his first public office with the U․S․ House of Representatives in 2002, taking over Rod Blagojevich's empty seat for the state of Illinois
• Began working in politics in the early 1980s, serving on the election committees for Richard M․ Daley, Paul Simon and Bill Clinton
• Named White House Chief of Staff by President Barack Obama in November of 2008, a position he would hold until September of 2010
• Assumed the head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2006 following the death of the previous head, Bob Matsui
• Successfully ran for Mayor of Chicago in 2010, officially taking office on February 22, 2011
• Briefly served as a civilian volunteer with the Israel Defense Forces during the Gulf War
• Known for his brash personality, he once mailed a dead fish to a pollster in Illinois who was late delivering polling results
• Trained in ballet since his childhood, he earned a scholarship to the Joffrey Ballet but turned it down