Rahm Emanuel to Debut Rahmma Mia! Before April 7 Runoff CHICAGO — With his personal style still an election issue, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is seeking to soften his image as the city’s “Godfather” before the April 7 runoff. His most recent move: the announcement of Rahmma Mia!, a musical commissioned by his campaign. During a press conference held Thursday in front of the Bank of America Theatre, Emanuel cited his new, lastminute production as proof that he is not an ogre. “Contrary to rumor,” he said, “I can feel feelings. Every now and then, certainly.” Mamma Mia!, the original musical on which Emanuel’s is based, is an international hit that features the music of Swedish pop group ABBA. Emanuel believes that by using the same tunes for his own political remake, some of ABBA’s bubbly charm will rub off on him. In addition to the poster above, Emanuel released the following lyric from the musical’s grand finale. It is to the tune of the 1976 hit, “Dancing Queen”: Not anybody could be that guy It’s runoff time and the stakes are hiiiigh With a bit of Rahm magic, Chitown will be fine He’ll put us in his trance And if he gets the chance… He’ll show you he’s not mean, Rahm is sweet, he plays on your team He’s not mean, his mad Tweets don’t mean anything Take a chance, we can thrive, he’ll be running this town his whole life, See that guy, his record’s clean, really, he’s not mean! Reached by phone in Stockholm, Erik Larsson, the manager of ABBA, confirmed that the band’s songs are rarely licensed. “But,” he explained, “Rahm made us an offer we couldn’t refuse.”
I wrote this satire a few weeks ahead of Rahm Emanuel's recent mayoral runoff election in Chicago. I intended to publish this on various political satire websites, but the Congressman who I work for refused to let me publish he—he was afraid of angering Rahm Emanuel. (I took it as a compliment.)
