An investigative reporter for the Denver Post found that more than 100 of the high-level officials appointed by Bush in his first term alone were overseeing the industries they used to represent as lobbyists, employees or lawyers.[...]
If Bush had tried to name a dedicated pacifist as secretary of defense, the public would have been outraged. But he has been doing virtually the same thing in many other agencies by appointing officials who are ideologically dedicated to subverting the purposes of the agencies they have joined.
In no particular order, here are a few of the "inappropriate" appointments:
Richard Stickler: to head mine safety, from mine manager with poor safety record (recess appointment)
Karl Zinsmeister: to Domestic Policy Adviser, from editor in chief of the American Enterprise Institute's magazine, knocking left politics, women in general, and diversity, and advocating racial profiling
Michael Baroody: to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, from lobbyist for the powerful National Association of Manufacturers successfully watering down requirements for consumer safety
Michael Wynne: to Air Force Secretary, from involvement in a corrupt lease deal with Boeing for which one Air Force officer was sent to jail
John Bolton: to UN Ambassador, from a proponent of doing away with the UN, international law and multilateralism (recess appointment)
Julie MacDonald: to Fish & Wildlife, from a civil engineer who went on in her position at F&W to overrule scientific studies on endangered species and had F&W staff alter reports, urging them to give more weight to industry concerns
Elaine Chao: to Labor Secretary, from board member of five major corporations and wife of Senator Mitch McConnell who is backed by campaign contributions from the coal industry
Gale Norton: to head the Department of the Interior, who once argued to the Supreme Court that the Endangered Species Act and the Surface Mining Act were unconstitutional (both of which the Interior Dept. is charged with carrying out)
Steven Griles: to Deputy Interior Secretary, from coal and oil industry lobbyist sentenced to prison for his involvement in the Abramoff case)
W. David Hager: to the FDA's Advisory Committee for Reproductive Health Drugs, from OB/GYN practice in which he refused to prescribe contraceptives to unmarried women, opposed to emergency contraception, abortion and premarital sex
Daniel Troy (since resigned): to chief counsel for the FDA, from attorney opposing the FDA in industry lawsuits attempting to restrict FDA powers
Michael Brown (famously resigned): to FEMA chief, from (fired) attorney for Arabian Horse Association
Rodney Paige: to Education Secretary, from superintendent of the Houston Independent School District, advocate of "Christian Schools" who referred to the country's largest teachers association as a terrorist group
....but hey, do what you want....you will anyway.
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