State of the babble.

[hackthis_archive]

I am not a morning person. No, like, for real, SO not a morning person. I had a thought that was going there, but mostly at this point I am all just blathering. Points of interest:

a) I posted my picfor1000 story, which is Chuck Happiness Was Never Really Our Success, which I apologise madly for if you tried to read it yesterday. There was a bit of a coding snafu, which cut out, like seven lines, which, when dealing with 1000 words, kind of relevant.

b) All Hail Generation Kill people! UK goers, GK started airing on FX like yesterday, so you know, FUCKING WATCH IT. Ahem. And the rest of us are required (yes, by me) to read bluflamingo's Yuletide Resolution story Seagulls and Sand, which takes place when Nate goes to visit Brad in the UK. Ah, GK fen, we do not turn out a lot of work (I have complaints about this), but what we do churn out I enjoy immensely. No lie. Maybe I need to check out the GK-based resolutions myself. Hmmm.

c) Speaking of small but mighty fandoms, Leverage folk, OMG THE ALEC/ELIOT Y'ALL ARE WRITING IS THE BOMB! Naturally, I (biasedly) recommend everything sparky77 has written (Leverage/O11 people), as well as with_a_key's work (esp this story), and this story by merle_p and this story by darkeyedwolf.

d) DEAR PRESIDENT OBAMA,

U IZ THE MOST AWESOMEST EVER.

<3,
X

e) Rahm Emanuel continues to be greater than you. (or me). Turns out the NYT has a White House OTP too.

f) I know y'all thought I was bullshitting you about Robert Downey Jr being cracked out in The Kingdom of the Blaggers, but I wasn't. Hell, by this example, I totally didn't apply ENOUGH crack. Gacked from musesfool

g) We now return you to your regularly scheduled Merlin/Burn Notice*/Psych/Gossip Girl/Leverage/BSG** babbling already in progress.

g2*) Burn Notice people, it is not my imagination that Michael got hotter, is it? Yeah, didn't think so. Also, do we all agree that in the Sam & Michael relationship, Sam is the big brother, which is why he gets to call Michael "Mikey" and nobody else does. Do we have fic about that, because we sure as hell need some.

g3) BSG, people, I don't even have words about the last two weeks. Actually, yes I do : OMGWTFBBQSTOPLYING!

Comments

[florahart]

psst: your html for the NYT/Rahm link has fail... it's trying to append the URL at the end of the page it's coming from (e.g., my flist), likely cos it's missing the http:// part.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

ACK! FAIL! Should be fixed now. Bad hackthis. 30 lashes with Rahm's whip. *pauses That didn't sound that kinky in my head.

[musesfool.livejournal.com]

do we all agree that in the Sam & Michael relationship, Sam is the big brother, which is why he gets to call Michael "Mikey" and nobody else does. Do we have fic about that, because we sure as hell need some.

You should TOTALLY write that. And yes indeed, Michael has managed to get hotter. I am not sure how, but your eyes do not deceive you.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

I was rewatching the premiere, and that bit where they were fighting, I was like, OMG! Sam's the older brother! And it makes so much sense, when you look at it, b/c Sam is always looking out for him, and he has a pet name for him. Has Sam *ever* called in Michael? It's always Mike or Mikey. Sam is totally the irresponsible, girl-crazy older brother that Michael never had. I think one of the best parts of their relationship is that Michael knows Sam can take care of himself, it's not a constant worry like with Nate and Madeline. I totally just pulled that out of ... thin air. Yes, thin air.

Also? SUPER HOT this week.

[musesfool.livejournal.com]

*nod nod*

Exactly.

*hearts*

[suaine.livejournal.com]

a) Bryce!

b) It's mine! It's all mine! JUST FOR ME! *clutches story to her chest* (I have this GK bunny that I don't really know how to put into words but maybe one of the resolutions can spark something)

c) Yes! I need to get on that Leverage/Merlin thingy I promised sparky77

d) ISN'T HE JUST? <3

e) Oh dear gods. Wow. That RPS basically writes itself now.

f) I read that and thought of you.

g) Squeeee!

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

b) You lucky girl! I was reading it and I just felt so happy and peaceful (okay, after I was all anxious on Nate's part, because you know Nate's the kind of character where if he gets a papercut *I* hurt*), so, um, yes. Brad + Nate 4eva! I must trawl the requests after I do this Merlin story for 1000.

c) YES! NOW!

e) Barack + Rahm = BFF for LIFE. Barack + Michelle are my OTP to end all OTPs, but I think Barack + Rahm are just way fun. But alas, I have a hardcore block on writing Mr. Awesome. Rahm no, Barack yes.

f) Oh, Bob.

[thorne-scratch.livejournal.com]

Barack + Michelle are my OTP to end all OTPs, but I think Barack + Rahm are just way fun. But alas, I have a hardcore block on writing Mr. Awesome. Rahm no, Barack yes.

I swear, every time I look at the picture of Barack and Michelle in the elevator, my heart just does this happy flipflop and goes "Eeeeeeee!"

It's been almost a week here in DC, and people are still going around with slightly dazed looks of happiness, like we can't quite believe it.

[elzed.livejournal.com]

Oh, I LOVE the Rahm piece in the NYT. Thanks for the link...

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Rahm is just... [waves hands] Rahm. The other awesome.

[lembeau.livejournal.com]

Yay for Chuck. Those additional seven lines did help, a lot, lol. It was adorkably cute. Chuck <3's Bryce.

I will eventually get to Leverage (and Burn Notice). Some day. But that's never stopped me from the sparkly fic, so yay!

Heh, RDJ is all kinds of awesome. Did you see the vid where he's being asked about his nominations? It's adorable, cuz he's teasing his wife, who's off-screen.

I'm sad I can't access the Rahm NYT article. Maybe I'll try later.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Yay for Chuck. Those additional seven lines did help, a lot, lol.

::is covered in embarassment::

Clearly this is why I should not post on the weekend, b/c I don't pay attention to what I'm doing. Also, Leverage is just pretty damn awesome.

I'm sad I can't access the Rahm NYT article. Maybe I'll try later.

Can you still not see it? If not I can cut and paste it here! Everybody should be able to love Rahm.

[lembeau.livejournal.com]

Copy/Paste please! Share the Rahm love.

::is covered in embarassment::

*pats you consolingly* You can totally put it down as a Obama brain moment. You were too busy taking in his awesome to wrangle with silly coding. Pffft I say.

Part 1

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Obama’s Partisan, Profane Confidant Reins It In

WASHINGTON — Early this month, Barack Obama was meeting with the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, and other lawmakers when Rahm Emanuel, his chief of staff, began nervously cracking a knuckle.

Mr. Obama then turned to complain to Mr. Emanuel about his noisy habit.

At which point, Mr. Emanuel held the offending knuckle up to Mr. Obama’s left ear and, like an annoying little brother, snapped off a few special cracks.

The episode, confirmed by Mr. Emanuel’s office, underscores some essential truths about Mr. Emanuel: He is brash, has a deep comfort level with his new boss, and has been ever-present at Mr. Obama’s side of late, in meetings, on podiums and in photographs.

There he was, standing at President Obama’s desk in one of the first Oval Office pictures; and again, playfully thumbing his nose at his former House colleagues during the inauguration; there he was, accompanying the president to a meeting with Congressional leaders on Friday.

Mr. Emanuel is arguably the second most powerful man in the country and, just a few days into his tenure, already one of the highest-profile chiefs of staff in recent memory. He starred in his own Mad magazine cartoon, won the “Your New Obama Hottie” contest on Gawker.com and has become something of a paparazzi icon around Washington.

In recent months, he has played a crucial role in the selection and courtship of nearly every cabinet member and key White House staff member.

Renowned as a fierce partisan, he has been an ardent ambassador to Republicans, including Mr. Obama’s defeated rival, Senator John McCain of Arizona. He has exerted influence on countless decisions; in meetings, administration officials say, Mr. Obama often allows him to speak first and last.

“You can see how he listens and reacts to Rahm,” said Ron Klain, the chief of staff to Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. “You can see that his opinion is being shaped.”

A reason Mr. Emanuel, 49, has drawn so much attention is that he seems to be in a kind of recalibration mode.

How will the feisty, bombastic and at times impulsive former congressman blend with the cool, collegial and deliberate culture of Obama World? And one that is trying to foster bipartisanship? This is someone who once wrote in Campaign and Elections magazine that “the untainted Republican has not yet been invented” and who two years ago — according to a book about Mr. Emanuel (“The Thumpin’ ” by Naftali Bendavid) — announced to his staff that Republicans are “bad people who deserve a two-by-four upside their heads.”

Efforts at a New Aura

It is clear to friends and colleagues that Mr. Emanuel is trying to rein himself in, lower his voice, even cut down on his use of profanity.

“As chief of staff, you take on the aura and image and, in some instance, the political values of the person you work for,” said former Representative Ray LaHood, an Illinois Republican who is now transportation secretary. “I think he’s beginning to morph himself into the Obama image.”

Mr. Emanuel acknowledged in an interview Friday that a stereotype of him as a relentless hothead has some factual basis. But it is an exaggerated or outdated picture, he said.

“I’m not yelling at people; I’m not jumping on tables,” he said. “That’s a campaign. Being the chief of staff of a government is different. You have different tools in your toolbox.”

Still, his high profile and temperament are at odds with that of some past White House chiefs of staff: they were often low-key types who put the “staff” part of their job titles before “chief” — as Andrew H. Card Jr., the longtime chief of staff to former President George W. Bush, suggested to Mr. Emanuel last month.

Part 2

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Mr. Emanuel, who had hopes of becoming House speaker, has stepped into a job characterized by short tenures — just under two and a half years, on average — high burnout rates and the need to subjugate personal ambitions to the service of the president.

He is not accustomed to fading discreetly into the background. As a staff member in the Clinton White House, a three-term House member from Chicago and the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, he was viewed by many as a consummate purveyor of a crass, kneecapping brand of politics.

Mr. Obama acknowledged as much at a 2005 roast for Mr. Emanuel, who is a former ballet dancer, during which Mr. Obama credited him with being “the first to adapt Machiavelli’s ‘The Prince’ for dance” (a number that included “a lot of kicks below the waist”). When Mr. Emanuel lost part of his middle finger while cutting meat at an Arby’s as a teenager, Mr. Obama joked, the accident “rendered him practically mute.”

The video of that roast has become a recent sensation on the Internet and buttressed a view among some Republicans that Mr. Emanuel’s appointment was, in the words of the House minority leader, Representative John A. Boehner of Ohio, “an ironic choice for a president-elect who has promised to change Washington, make politics more civil.”

While acknowledging that he can be something of a showman, friends say Mr. Emanuel has calmed considerably.

“He’s more temperate now,” said David Axelrod, a senior White House adviser and longtime Emanuel friend who dismissed much of his flamboyant reputation as “pure myth.” Mr. Axelrod added, “A lot of it is a reputation he earned as a younger guy.”


On the Go Before Sunrise

Late Friday afternoon, at the end of his first week in the White House, Mr. Emanuel was sitting in his corner office, sick with a cold, baggy-eyed and looking tired. “Everyone keeps saying, ‘Are you having fun?’ ” he said. “Fun is not the first adjective that comes to mind.”

He woke as usual at 5 a.m., swam a mile at the Y, read papers and was in the office at 7 for the senior staff meeting at 7:30. There was a meeting in the Situation Room about Afghanistan; a leadership meeting; a conversation with the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, Democrat of Nevada; a meeting with Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah; budget meetings; several conversations with the president.

Mr. Emanuel, in the interview, rejected any notion that he was reinventing himself for his new job. But he is mindful, he said, that he must fit into a culture that was forged over two years on a campaign, “a group that was part of a journey together.”

Mr. Obama had settled on his fellow Chicagoan to be his chief of staff well before he was elected. He was drawn to Mr. Emanuel’s experience in both the White House and Congress and called him “the whole package” of political acumen, policy chops and pragmatism. He is also a skilled compromiser. “He knows there is a time in this business to drop the switchblades and make a deal,” said Representative Adam H. Putnam, Republican of Florida.

Mr. Emanuel initially resisted taking the job. He came around after Mr. Obama insisted, saying these were momentous times and that the awesome tasks he faced required Mr. Emanuel’s help. The president-elect also assured Mr. Emanuel that the position would be the functional equivalent of “a No. 2” or “right-hand man,” according to a person familiar with their exchanges.

After taking the job, Mr. Emanuel spent endless hours reaching out to lawmakers. Mr. Reid gave out Mr. Emanuel’s personal cellphone number, with Mr. Emanuel’s blessing, at a caucus meeting of about 40 Senate Democrats this month. (“He seems to speak to every senator every day,” said Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York.)

Part 3

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Mr. Emanuel has been equally solicitous of Republicans in Congress (who also have been given access to Mr. Emanuel’s private contact information). On days he does not swim, he works out, and conducts business, at the House gym: 25 minutes on the bike, 20 minutes on the elliptical, 120 situps, 55 push-ups and many sweaty conversations with his former colleagues. In a recent encounter there, for instance, with Representative Peter Hoekstra, Republican of Michigan, Mr. Emanuel secured his support for Leon E. Panetta to head the Central Intelligence Agency.

Mr. Emanuel has endured, or caused, some early distractions — his conversations with Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich of Illinois about Mr. Obama’s then-vacant Senate seat; his failure to alert Senator Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat who is chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, to Mr. Panetta’s appointment.

So far, Mr. Emanuel has been more chief than staff in performing his job, according to several officials. He advocated fiercely for posts for fellow Clinton administration alums like Hillary Rodham Clinton and Mr. Panetta; not so much for the outgoing Democratic National Committee chairman, Howard Dean, with whom he had clashed while at the Congressional Campaign Committee. (“He was never negative about Dean,” said the Obama transition head, John D. Podesta, who added, “I wouldn’t characterize it as the other way, either.”)

Mr. Emanuel has also served as the administration’s chief headhunter. When the Office of Management and Budget director, Peter R. Orszag, had doubts about taking the job, Mr. Emanuel went into his default mode — jackhammering away at him, tracking him down in Hong Kong. “You can’t sit on the sidelines; you’ve got to come inside,” Mr. Emanuel told him.

Asked if “relentless” would be a fair characterization of Mr. Emanuel’s recruitment method, Mr. Orszag said, simply: “He’s Rahm. Come on.”


The selection of Mr. LaHood demonstrates Mr. Emanuel’s sway with Mr. Obama. After Mr. Emanuel sounded out Mr. LaHood about his interest in joining the administration, he was summoned to a meeting in Chicago with the president-elect.

The interview lasted 30 minutes, just Mr. Obama and Mr. LaHood.

“Look, Rahm Emanuel loves you,” Mr. Obama told Mr. LaHood as he prepared to leave. “He is really pressing me and pushing me. And it’s not that I don’t want to do it, but. ...”

A few days later, Mr. LaHood was selected to be transportation secretary.

Banter With the Boss

At a White House gathering with Mr. Obama and a bipartisan team of lawmakers on Friday, the House majority leader, Steny H. Hoyer, Democrat of Maryland, joked that Mr. Emanuel was too busy to talk to him, so he called the president instead. Mr. Obama said he was always happy to take calls for his chief of staff — a reference to an incident a few weeks ago when Mr. Hoyer called Mr. Emanuel, who was in the back of a car and claimed he was too busy to talk, so he handed the phone to Mr. Obama.

In meetings, it is not uncommon for Mr. Obama and Mr. Emanuel to engage in teasing banter. One White House official recalls an exchange last week in which Mr. Obama said something to the effect of, “Well, I was going to do that, but I didn’t want Rahm to mope for a half-hour.”

Part 4

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

But it will not always be so pleasant for Mr. Emanuel. “He’s going to be blamed for a lot of things,” Representative Tom Cole, Republican of Oklahoma, said of his former colleague.

Saying no is a big part of being chief of staff. Infighting is inevitable; so are enemies and rivalries.

In addition to cabinet officials — and the vice president — a cadre of “senior advisers” who have long and varied histories with Mr. Obama will be seeking his attention. They include Pete Rouse (Mr. Obama’s chief of staff in the Senate), Valerie Jarrett (a close Obama family friend) and Mr. Axelrod, whose office is a few feet closer to the Oval Office than is Mr. Emanuel’s. The White House spokesman, Robert Gibbs, one of the Mr. Obama’s closest Senate and campaign aides, will also enjoy walk-in access to the president.

Mr. Emanuel has been in the job four days — and, by day’s end Friday, it looked more like four years.

He is slumped deep in his couch, periodically swatting at a giant fly that keeps orbiting his office. He is hoping to get out of the office to meet some friends for the Jewish Sabbath dinner. He has a physical therapy appointment for a pinched nerve in his neck. He missed his children — 8, 10 and 11 — who are visiting this week but are soon headed back to Chicago, where they are remaining for now. “For me to be the parent I want to be, I think it’s very hard,” he said, referring to the demands of his current job.

Just then, Mr. Orszag arrived at his door.

“Orz, what’s wrong?” Mr. Emanuel said. “Can you give me a minute, or do you need something?”

He needed something.

Mr. Emanuel left, returned and started talking about how his staffs tended to be loyal. “I drive people as hard as I drive myself,” he said.

Then Mr. Obama came to his door.

“Mr. President!” Mr. Emanuel said, jumping from his couch to his feet in something that resembled a dance move, and they walked out together.

Re: Part 4

[lembeau.livejournal.com]

One White House official recalls an exchange last week in which Mr. Obama said something to the effect of, “Well, I was going to do that, but I didn’t want Rahm to mope for a half-hour.”

That's adorable.

Re: Part 1

[lembeau.livejournal.com]

Ooooh, thank you!! Heh, you know Barack will get Rahm back for annoying him when he least expects it. :OP

[alethialia.livejournal.com]

Ah, GK fen, we do not turn out a lot of work (I have complaints about this),

SO DO I!

but what we do churn out I enjoy immensely. No lie.

Indeed. That's some good stuff right there.

Maybe I need to check out the GK-based resolutions myself. Hmmm.

::supports this like whoa::

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Maybe I need to check out the GK-based resolutions myself. Hmmm.

::supports this like whoa::

Shocking I tell you. Shocking. Hmmm. If you could make me write something, what would it be? Just for curiosity's sake.

[alethialia.livejournal.com]

I knew it would shock you. I like to keep you on your toes, see.

First thought: Nate visits Brad in England! Second thought: high school AU!

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

I walked into that one.

[alethialia.livejournal.com]

::is very innocent::

[nicolasechs.livejournal.com]

Dude, when I read that NYT article, my jaw dropped a little. Because there really was slash in the Grey Lady. I mean, they ended on *this*:

Then Mr. Obama came to his door.

“Mr. President!” Mr. Emanuel said, jumping from his couch to his feet in something that resembled a dance move, and they walked out together.

And they lived happily ever after. (And with civil liberties for all!)

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

[truthiness-aura.livejournal.com]

d) SECONDED (also having a crush on the President- eff it, the whole First Family- is very weird, but I could get used to it)

f) RDJ and Anne Hathaway = my personal dream cocktail party. Thank you for linking, I made ridiculous squee noises through the entire article.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

d) It's okay, I understand. They are just that damn awesome.

[tenaciousmetoo.livejournal.com]

Best.Rahm post.ever. Thanks for that.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Thanks!

[issaro.livejournal.com]

dude, did you see the swim trunks?

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

What there were of them, yes ;)

[mydocuments.livejournal.com]

Re: (b) I've found that it's best to inspire others through your own actions ficwriting. ::Nodnodnod::

Also, hi. This is me, sort of stalking your ell-jay. Hola!

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

LOL. I will keep that in mind :)