Many in Washington hope that Obama could use the changes to mark a fresh start.
Known as Rahmbo by friends and enemies alike and assigned the code name Black Hawk by the secret service, Emanuel’s frequent impulsive style of management helped mark Obama’s rollercoaster ride in the White House during the past 20 months.
Emanuel, 50, is notoriously short-tempered and some pundits have attributed his desire to leave to personality differences with the president.
Emanuel’s tenor as chief of staff certainly has been surrounded by criticism, including those who say that he managed the White House rather than the administration as a whole.
This resulted in senior officials in leading departments complaining angrily about being treated as minions and being frozen out of core White House decision making.
Three of the leading names to replace Emanuel are Tom Donilon, the current deputy head of the National Security Council; Peter Rouse, an adviser to Obama who was his chief of staff in the Senate; and Ron Klain, Joe Biden’s chief of staff.
Unlike the foul-mouthed Emanuel, all three men are said to be neither pretentious nor impetuous. All are good at the routine tasks of managing complex bureaucracy and ensuring that everyone has a seat at the table. Any of the three men would mark a real change from their predecessor.
But Emanuel is not the only one heading for the door. Many White House staff changes are expected take place in the aftermath of the Nov. 2 congressional elections where Obama's Democrats could face big losses.
The departures include key White House aides such a senior Obama adviser David Axelrod who is leaving early 2011 to work on Obama's re-election campaign.
Having to wrestle with so many leaving the White House at once, insiders say is not only the result of internal in-fighting, but also staff burnout in an administration that has struggled with two wars and an economic crisis.
The top tier of Obama's economic team is also seeing big changes. Senior White House economic adviser Larry Summers plans to leave by the end of the year. Obama has already had to replace Peter Orszag as budget chief and Christina Romer as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers.
Insiders say Summer’s departure will be mourned by few at the White House, where he quickly established a reputation for brusqueness and arrogance. He reportedly had tense relationships with members of Obama's economic team, and his ties to Wall Street aggravated some in the Democratic left.
But that’s not all. President Obama is facing a series of departures that will reshape his national security team, altering the chemistry of a group which may be remembered for its divisions over the Afghan war.
White House national security adviser, retired Marine General Jim Jones, is expected to step down later this year. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who remained from the Bush administration, has signaled his intention to resign sometime in 2011, when Admiral Mike Mullen, the top U.S. military officer, is also expected to retire.
That would leave Obama with three top national security jobs to fill – which many say is a daunting task for a first-term president moving to finish it troop drawdown in Iraq next year and start one in Afghanistan.
