"Rahm Emanuel Should Go All Ronald Reagan On Chicago's Teachers Union."

The most famous Rahm Emanuel quote is: “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste.” 

In this case, Emanuel has a unique opportunity to reform the entire Chicago public school system, ensuring that children get a quality education in a district where only 56 percent of students even graduate. If he is nimble, he can easily leverage this situation.

The students themselves provide a ready-made prop for Emanuel to announce that if the teachers do not return to work immediately, they will be replaced. Simply call together a press conference with out-of-school students standing in the background in solidarity, and the politics will take care of itself.