Day after euphoric victory, Obama team puts leash on expectations

Joel Benenson, Obama’s campaign pollster, said he thought that the public appreciated the problems that the president-elect was facing and would judge him against that backdrop.

Obama will hit that theme at a news conference he is expected to hold over the coming days, and in most of his public appearances from here on out, aides said. They said they would discourage the traditional yardstick for measuring the accomplishments of a new president — the first 100 days. Obama told an interviewer toward the end of his campaign that it was more appropriate to talk about the first 1,000 days.

Obama’s advisers said that the tone of his victory speech on Tuesday night — sober and devoid of the arm-pumping that would typically be in an address of that sort — reflected that he was aware of these circumstances. Obama warned that the promises that led Americans to embrace his candidacy might take as long a term to carry out.

The caution reflected the inevitable perils of taking control of the White House at such a difficult time, particularly after a campaign that stirred so much hope among voters. The economic crisis will certainly complicate Obama’s more ambitious domestic efforts like broadening health care coverage and cutting taxes for most Americans. His call for a change in the tone in Washington would require a sharp shift in history. Even with substantial Democratic majorities in the Senate and the House, passing major legislation could still be time-consuming for Obama and require compromises.

“The flip side of this — and I want to make sure this is also clear — we also believe that it is paramount to begin doing everything we said we would do in the campaign,” Gibbs said. “We know expectations are high. But disappointment if we didn’t try to do the things that we said we were going to do would be far, far greater than anything else.”

A nearly 500-point drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday was a reminder that Obama’s election did not bring the financial crisis to a close, and that the economic downturn could limit his ability to pursue his full agenda right off the bat by demanding an immediate focus on trying to pull the nation out of recession. And, even if Americans are ready to bear with Obama as he pursues policy proposals, they may not as readily accept the sort of compromise that legislative accomplishment often requires.

Rahm Emanuel has accepted obama’s offer to be White House chief of staff

Would bring to the job

An unusual hybrid of high-level experience as a top adviser to President Bill Clinton together with proven expertise as a Congressional leader and political strategist As the No. 4 Democrat in the House and an architect of the Democratic majority,

Mr. Emanuel knows Congress from the inside out after winning his seat in 2002. In the Clinton administration, he was aggressive, frequently profane and instrumental in shaping domestic policy on issues like health care, welfare and trade.

In his own words

“We’re going to put in front of the American people the fundamental question of this election: Who’s going to change the economic policies in Washington that resulted in a lower standard of living for middle-class families?”

Biography includes

Born November 29, 1959, in Chicago. Liberal arts degree from Sarah Lawrence College, masters from Northwestern. Married to Amy Rule, three children. A regular swimmer and a voracious reader, using his hours aboard airplanes to consume books. Served briefly as a civilian volunteer on an Israeli military base during the Persian Gulf war of 1991.

Carries as baggage

Emanuel’s stint in high finance and his experience in the banking world opens him to some criticism of being too allied with Wall Street, not the image Democrats want to cultivate these days. Critics have asserted he was only able to succeed in the banking world because of his political connections. His manner can also create enemies, and Emanuel has ruffled the feathers of many on Capitol Hill, particularly black and Hispanic lawmakers.

Used to work as

An investment banker for three years after leaving the White House and before being elected to the House. He banked $16 million while handling mergers and acquisitions with an emphasis on utilities.