Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel to leave White House

President Obama will announce the departure of White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel later today. As the right hand man to the president, Emanuel championed Obama’s causes behind the scenes and brokered deals to push through legislation. But his wasn’t a flawless record. Critics argue that Emanuel’s pugilistic nature often attracted negative attention to himself, and that his focus on short term goals squandered some of the political capital the president carried into his first term.

For a look at the role that the Chief of Staff plays in the modern presidency, and some of the historic tenures, we speak to Douglas Brinkley, Professor of History at Rice University and the author of the books ?The Wilderness Warrior? and ?The Great Deluge.? Takeaway Washington correspondent Todd Zwillich also weighs in.