Rahm Emanuel Lays Down the Law

Incoming White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel had some straight talk for top business executives, telling them to get on board with major health care reform and help for the middle class, the Wall Street Journal says. Emanuel also struck a “combative” pose in addressing the executives, the Journal reported:

“When it gets rough out there, a lot of business leaders get out of the car and say, ‘We’re OK with minor reform.’ I’m challenging you today, we’re going to have to do big, serious things,” Rahm Emanuel said, speaking to The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council, a conference convened to elicit corporate opinion on the challenges facing the new president.

Emanuel didn’t stop at health care overhaul. He also told the leaders they need to help find ways to ease the middle-class squeeze or “face a revolt”:

“We need a strategy as a country to make sure they have an opportunity to move up that ladder,” he said.

Those are pretty strong words to shout out to a bunch of top business executives probably a little nervous about a new Democratic administration. I’d imagine drinks at the country club later were probably accompanied by some heated conversations.

But given the state of the country’s economy, maybe Emanuel felt the time had long passed for polite conversation with highly-compensated CEOs.