Crises — either real or merely perceived — can make or break political careers as news media and the voting public judge how those who hold or aspire to office respond.

Rahm Emanuel and Jesse Jackson Jr. have hordes of critics and rivals, but they won’t be looking over their shoulders.

Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan from 2021 to 2025, has served in Congress, as White House chief of staff under President Barack Obama, and as mayor of Chicago. He will spend the next year writing about politics and national security with a special focus on the future of the Democratic Party.

Emanuel fired back to double down on branding Trump’s defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth an “alcoholic” on Morning Joe.

On the bright side, Emanuel’s final journey seems to be everything he wanted. His delight in the shinkansen’s smoothness, speed, punctuality and efficiency is genuine — as is his despair that the US is not criss-crossed with high-speed rail lines.