Jimmy Fallon took to Twitter Thursday to express his skepticism over Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s offer to visit the "Tonight Show" if the new host joins him for a Lake Michigan “Polar Plunge” to raise cash for the Special Olympics.
And Fallon wants to know if Chicago will protect him from our city’s bulldog mayor, whom some folks call “Rahmbo.”
“I don’t know @RahmEmanuel… How do I know this isn’t a set up? Chicago — if I do this — will you have my back? #PolarPlunge,” Fallon tweeted Thursday.
Well, of course, we’ll have your back, Mr. Fallon.
In fact, here’s the backstory on why Mayor Emanuel will throw himself into the painfully cold waters of Lake Michigan on March 2.
In June, Emanuel promised Chicago kids that if they read 2 million books over the summer he’d take the icy dip in the lake — giving “new meaning to the phrase 'reading is cool.'"
And city kids — “Rahm’s Readers,” as they’re known — pulled it off. By City Hall’s count, kids polished off 2.1 million books, and the mayor’s standing by his promise.
So, Mr. Fallon, I think it’s safe to say that the fix isn’t in — on this one.
What’s more likely is that our mayor figures that if he can get the hottest act in show business — and no doubt that’s you, Jimmy Fallon — to jump in the lake with him, it would bring in a lot of cash that could help Chicago’s Special Olympics athletes.
And if Fallon doesn’t show up, well, the new "Tonight Show" host would have to suffer the agonizing guilt of letting those kids down.
A lesson in persuasion that Rahm no doubt learned from Jewish mothers who have, as he has said, "a corner on the market as it relates to guilt.”
Now, it's up to you, Jimmy.
