Rahm Emanuel, a former aide to former President Barack Obama and current U.S. ambassador to Japan, claimed that President-elect Trump will “turn the Oval Office into eBay.”
emmanuel Joined Ezra Klein of the New York TimesThere, he was asked about his biggest concerns about Trump's second term as president.
“Donald Trump is going to turn the Oval Office into eBay,” Emanuel said. “He's going to sell it to all sorts of special interests, and you're going to pay for it.”
The ambassador argued that the Democratic Party will be a “thin blue line” that seeks to protect the public interest from corporate interests.
He said the party would have to prevent the pharmaceutical industry from “taking everything it wants” and preventing Americans from “paying for everything they have.” He argued the party would have to get in the way of children's mental health, online protection and TikTok.
“The Oval Office will be eBay,” Emanuel reiterated. “And whoever pays the highest price gets what they want, but you end up paying through the nose.”
Emanuel and Klein discussed the Democratic Party's shortcomings in recent elections.
The ambassador argued that the party's message should have focused more on the benefits it brought to the American people, rather than “democracy and the rule of law.”
“Guess what? We had those voters too. That was something else we needed,” he said.
President Trump has appointed tech billionaire Elon Musk to co-lead the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk has poured millions of dollars into the Trump campaign, raising concerns about his influence over the president-elect, the world's richest man.
Emanuel said Democrats had an opportunity to go after Trump's relationship with Musk, calling it a “target-rich environment.”
“And we left it there,” he said.
Emanuel pointed to Trump's Cabinet picks, saying they reflect all the special interests Biden has spent his time in office fighting.
“Donald Trump is going to let them back in,” Emanuel said. “And not only are you going to come back, you’re going to pay for it.”
Emanuel, a former Chicago mayor, is a veteran Washington insider who served under three Democratic presidents. He is known for his high energy and frequent use of profanity.
He has been recommended by Democratic strategist David Axelrod to be the new chairman of the Democratic National Committee.
The Hill has reached out to Trump's transition team for comment.
