Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from Allie Bice. Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Alex | Email Max The ambassadorship to Japan is often a prestigious but sleepy posting. Not when RAHM EMANUEL is around. The former White House chief of staff and Chicago mayor has thrown himself into the job with his signature Tasmanian devil energy that will be on display this week during JOE BIDEN’s first visit as president to Asia. White House and administration officials tell us Emanuel’s 312 number has been popping up on phones constantly as he has inserted himself into the planning of the trip including the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, or IPEF, that the administration considers key to it’s strategy to contain China. Some officials couldn’t help but notice (and be a tad impressed) that the IPEF is expected to be signed at — of all places — the ambassador’s residence in Tokyo next week. “Let's just say the residence is a beautiful, beautiful home,” Emanuel said innocently in an interview. “I like the late night calls and he’s getting a lot of stuff done,” said one administration official who appreciates Emanuel’s unique energy. When he was nominated, even some Democrats wondered if Emanuel’s well-earned reputation for sharp elbows and colorful language would make him a bad fit for the ambassadorial corps and Japan in particular. But Emanuel has found his combative style has a place in modern day diplomacy. In some ways, he has become an American response to China’s new “wolf warrior” diplomats who regularly criticize the U.S. online. As Emanuel tweeted this week: “Sri Lanka is down to its last day of fuel and falling apart, and they owe China an additional $4 billion and growing. This is what happens when you become a China subject. Any other takers? Please fall in line!” And when the Chinese state-affiliated Global Times wrote an article this week about Emanuel and the U.S. trying to use IPEF to isolate China, Emanuel clapped back: “When it comes to isolating China, China doesn’t need any help. They’ve done a Class A job on their own—but I’m always ready to assist if they need it.” Emanuel has quarreled with Russia’s ambassador to Japan and after Japan expelled eight Russian officials, he quipped , “Enjoy the flight home!” Over his first four months, the following of the @USAmbJapan Twitter account doubled. “Let me say this, the Japanese public loves me,” Emanuel told West Wing Playbook. “And the Chinese party and the Russian ambassador don't like me. I need a food taster for my next meeting.” Asked about his approach, Emanuel said, “They squirm because of the truth.” “Japan and the United States are going from alliance protection to alliance projection," he said. And part of that is letting China know we're going to call them out. Letting the Russians know, as it relates to the war, you can believe your own spin but we're gonna pull the curtain back on their fake news.” Emanuel isn’t just playing the part of an American wolf warrior. He’s crafting it, too. He said he works on and edits his tweets with his team, who sometimes refer to him as just “the Boss.” The tweets are also often noted approvingly in senior staff meetings back in D.C., according to an administration official. But another administration official was less certain about the Rahm approach. “Can a bull in a china shop — that’s the wrong country. Can a sumo wrestler in a tea room approach work in this job?” the person asked. But Emanuel has also showcased a, dare we say, softer side as ambassador. Many of his most popular tweets in Japan are of him riding various trains around the country.
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