The Common Good Forum
American Renewal Project
Presents Amb. Rahm Emanuel
Former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Mayor of Chicago, Obama White House Chief of Staff, and Democratic Congressman from Illinois
Thursday, May 28th, 12:00-2:00pm ET, at The Yale Club
Rahm Emanuel has emerged as one of the sharpest voices arguing that American renewal must be built around concrete national purpose: stronger schools, universal national service, community college as a bridge to the middle class, tougher government accountability, immigration reform, and a renewed commitment to American competitiveness in the world.
At the heart of Emanuel’s argument is a simple but urgent credo: America cannot restore public trust through grievance, nostalgia, or permanent opposition. It has to prove again that democratic government can deliver — that it can prepare young people for work and citizenship, rebuild the middle-class bargain, protect families from new threats, and give Americans a renewed sense of shared obligation and national possibility.
As part of The Common Good American Renewal Project, this conversation will explore what it would actually take to move the country beyond division and toward material progress, institutional reform, and a more confident national future. Few leaders bring Emanuel’s combination of political combat, executive experience, diplomatic perspective, and willingness to challenge both parties’ orthodoxies. His voice is essential to any serious conversation about how America can govern, compete, and believe in itself again.
Join us for a timely and inspiring conversation on the ideas, leadership, and national seriousness American renewal will require. Bring your questions.
About Our Speaker
Rahm Emanuel is a former U.S. Ambassador to Japan, Mayor of Chicago, White House Chief of Staff, and Democratic congressman from Illinois. He served as U.S. Ambassador to Japan from 2022 to 2025, where he worked to strengthen the U.S.-Japan alliance amid rising strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific. Before his diplomatic service, Emanuel served two terms as the 55th Mayor of Chicago, from 2011 to 2019.
From 2009 to 2010, Emanuel served as White House Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama, helping guide the administration through the financial crisis and the passage of major early legislative priorities. He previously represented Illinois’s 5th Congressional District from 2003 to 2009, chaired the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee during the party’s 2006 House majority win, and later served as Chair of the House Democratic Caucus. Earlier in his career, he served as a senior adviser in the Clinton White House.
Emanuel is currently a Senior Advisor at Centerview Partners and a Senior Political and Global Affairs Commentator for CNN. He is the author of The Nation City: Why Mayors Are Now Running the World and co-author, with Bruce Reed, of The Plan: Big Ideas for America.