Rahm Emanuel hasn’t even officially started his new job as the White House Chief of Staff and he is already being forced to apologize for a remark his father made.

From ABC News’ Jake Tapper.

Upon hearing of his son’s new gig, the father of incoming White
House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel was quoted in the Israeli newspaper
Ma’Ariv, saying, “Obviously, he’ll influence the president to be
pro-Israel. Why wouldn’t he? What is he, an Arab? He’s not going to be mopping floors at the White House.”

This
has prompted a letter from American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
heads Kareem Shora and former Rep. Mary Rose Oakar, D-Ohio, to the
junior Mr. Emanuel, congratulating him and President-elect Obama,
saying they are “deeply disappointed by comments made by your father,
Mr. Benjamin Emanuel.”

The ADC, they write,
“views this characterization of an Arab as an unacceptable smear. One
can readily imagine the justifiable outcry if someone made a similar
remark about African-Americans, Jews, or Hispanics, concerning cleaning
the floors of the White House. Do the normal standards of decency and
civility not apply when talking about Arabs? ADC asks you to disavow
and repudiate these remarks publicly. We sincerely hope you will
distance yourself from any demeaning characterization of any ethnic,
religious, or racial group.”

President-elect Obama is cc’ed on the letter.

- jpt

UPDATE: A spokeswoman for Emanuel writes: “Today, Rep. Emanuel
called Mary Rose Oakar, president of the American-Arab
Anti-Discrimination Committee and apologized on behalf of his family
and agreed to meet with representatives of the Arab-American community
at an appropriate time in the future.”

That’s some change we are getting.

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