Obama staffers reunite in Chicago

Even before former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama brought the United Center house down last night, their former rock star campaign team crisscrossed the city reminding Democrats of their political successes.

The big picture: Obama White House staffers returned to Chicago this week to reunite at the Democratic National Convention and support the movement to elect Vice President Kamala Harris president.

What they're saying: "There's no place like home," Valerie Jarrett, now CEO of the Barack Obama Foundation, tells Axios.

• "I served all eight years of the Obama administration. I wouldn't have traded the privilege of those eight years for anything. But I don't want to go back; I want to go forward. I want to help the next generation.
• "It was a fabulous chapter of my life. I enjoyed every minute of it."

Zoom out: It's not just Jarrett. Other Chicago rock star politicos like David Axelrod and Bill Daley also have been active surrogates for Harris on television, podcasts and live interviews.

Flashback: In 2008, these relatively unknown Chicago campaign strategists helped elect a young U.S. senator and former Chicago community organizer. They presided over one of the most successful presidential campaigns in the nation's history.

• "He caught a moment in history, let's be honest," Daley told Axios during a live event on Tuesday . "We had never seen anything like that. He had the ability to touch people and make them feel, to be hopeful about the future of America. He was fun to work with. He is a really good guy."

State of play: Many have drawn comparisons between the "Obama coalition" built during the 2008 campaign and the grassroots enthusiasm generated since Harris moved to the top of the ticket, Axios' Avery Lotz reports.

• Jarrett said the on-the-ground excitement is similar, and that's being echoed online.
• "In a sense, it's a continuation of the hard work he began," Jarrett said of Obama's grassroots movement.

Context: Daley ended up serving as the White House chief of staff under Obama. He also served as the Commerce Secretary under the Clinton administration.

• "Both the Obama alumni and the Clinton alumni have stayed engaged in service to the public, stayed engaged in politics," Daley said.

Between the lines: Even Michelle Obama talked up Chicago and referenced the 2008 campaign, saying in a big DNC speech that "hope is making a comeback."

The bottom line: The Obamas and their former staffers are leaning on their achievements and lending a hand to help Harris make history.

• When they arrived in Chicago for the convention, Jarrett said she remarked to the Obamas that they were arriving back in their hometown as "two of the most popular people in the world."
• "Hard to believe, right?" the former president replied.

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