Emanuel promises GOP will have input

Rahm Emanuel, the incoming White House chief of staff,
met with top Republicans on Capitol Hill on Thursday and promised they would
have input in President-elect Barack Obama’s agenda.

{mosads}The hard-charging Chicago congressman told House and
Senate GOP leaders that he would extend a line of communication on big-ticket
items like energy, healthcare, taxes and education policy. The meetings are
part of a concerted effort by Obama to show that he is willing to work with
Republicans, and it follows his meeting this week with his rival, Sen. John
McCain (R-Ariz.), and promise to include at least one Republican in his
Cabinet.

“I told them I would like to welcome their ideas …
on a host of fronts,” said Emanuel, who is credited with orchestrating the
2006 Democratic takeover of the House that has put the GOP in the minority.

Emerging from a half-hour meeting with the Senate GOP
leadership team, Emanuel said he asked Republicans to give the incoming
administration their ideas as Obama’s agenda takes shape.

After making a brief statement to reporters and taking no
questions, Emanuel left to meet individually with House Republican leaders. He
said he has spoken to more than 20 members of the Republican Conference since
taking the chief of staff job earlier this month.

“As President-elect Obama has repeatedly said, the
challenges for the country are large; the problems we face of a serious
magnitude, that there is enough area and enough good will for ideas from both
parties to solve those challenges,” Emanuel said.