Democratic Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel

• Rahm Emanuel was sworn in as Chicago’s mayor in May 2011. Prior to that he was a member of the Obama administration, serving as the president’s chief of staff until he resigned in 2010 for his mayoral run. As White House chief of staff during the first two years of the administration, Emanuel was involved in prominent legislation including the Recovery and Reinvestment Act, as well as the Affordable Care Act. He also served three terms as representative for Chicago’s 5th Congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Watch his last appearance on Meet the Press.
• Emanuel has held various leadership positions within the Democratic Party including Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.  He was also a senior adviser to President Bill Clinton. 
• Emanuel is speaking at the Democratic Nation Convention in Charlotte, N.C. He’s said his speech will focus on his insider’s perspective on President Obama’s leadership and decisions like the auto industry bail out.
• Emanuel has been critical of the Romney-Ryan campaign. Earlier this month, he said vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) budget plan would “lead to a recession.” He and Ryan served together in the House Ways and Means Committee and the House Budget Committee during their time in Congress. Emanuel has also chastised Mitt Romney for his opposition to the auto bailout and for not admonishing conservative radio show host Rush Limbaugh for his controversial comments about Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke earlier this year. 

Roundtable: Gingrich, Fiorina, Goodwin, Friedman, Brokaw

• Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, a candidate for the 2012 Republican nomination, spoke at the party’s convention Thursday night with his wife, Callista. The speech focused on former President Reagan, drawing parallels between Reagan and Mitt Romney, and between President Obama and former President Jimmy Carter. Gingrich said Romney’s plans for the middle class and energy independence are rooted in Reagan’s approach and vision. Gingrich also made headlines this week for his “Newt University” seminars, which were held throughout the week and focused on delving into issues like Medicare. Watch Gingrich’s last Meet the Press appearance.
• Former CEO of Hewlett-Packard Carly Fiorina is currently vice chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which is working to elect a Republican majority to the Senate, and a co-chair of Mitt Romney’s campaign in California. Her name has been floated as a possible Treasury secretary in a Romney administration; she called the possibility “a great honor.” Watch Fiorina’s last appearance.  
• Presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author. Her book, “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln” is the basis for Steven Spielberg’s upcoming film, “Lincoln.” The book’s title was also used as a slogan by President Obama during his 2008 campaign to describe how he would build his White House staff.  See her last appearance on Meet the Press here.
• Tom Friedman is a New York Times columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He recently wrote in his column that what America needs is a real conservative party. Paul Ryan’s presence on the ticket spurs debate on economic issues, “[b]ut what’s even more troubling is that we need more than debates. That’s all we’ve been having. We need deals on all four issues as soon as this election is over, and I just don’t see that happening unless ‘conservatives’ retake the Republican Party from the ‘radicals.’” Watch his last Meet the Press appearance.
• NBC’s Tom Brokaw covered the Republican convention and provided analysis for the network coverage. Brokaw called Michelle Obama and Ann Romney the two best campaigners in this election, and predicted this campaign will focus a lot on women. Here is Brokaw’s last appearance on Meet the Press.

Follow these guests on Twitter:

• Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel: @RahmEmanuel  
• Newt Gingrich: @newtgingrich
• Carly Fiorina: @CarlyforCA
• Doris Kearns Goodwin: @DorisKGoodwin
• Tom Friedman: @tomfriedman
• Tom Brokaw: @tombrokaw