"A Harvard dean gets call from Washington; Obama taps Koh for a health post" by Stephen Smith, Globe Staff | March 26, 2009
President Obama last night nominated Dr. Howard Koh, an associate dean at the Harvard School of Public Health and former Massachusetts public health commissioner, to a top health position in his administration.
If confirmed by the Senate as assistant secretary for health, Koh would be responsible for establishing the nation's public health agenda, handling a vast portfolio that includes the US surgeon general and programs that coordinate vaccines, AIDS policy, minority health, and blood safety....
Koh is the second member of his family to be nominated to a top Obama administration post this week: On Monday his brother, Yale Law School dean Harold Koh, was picked to be the State Department's legal adviser, a post also requiring Senate approval.
Related: The Clinton Cabinet
Howard Koh served as the public health commissioner in Massachusetts from 1997 to 2003, first being appointed by Governor William Weld and continuing in the office through the administrations of Paul Cellucci and Jane Swift before resigning in the early days of the Mitt Romney administration.
As public health commissioner, Koh spread a gospel of prevention that was both personal and passionate. He had established his bona fides in the world of disease prevention as a young physician at the hospital that was the forerunner of Boston Medical Center. From that base, he helped direct the successful 1992 campaign to raise the state tobacco tax, with the money spent on launching Massachusetts' widely emulated Tobacco Control Program.
In the waning days of his tenure, swooning budget conditions forced Koh to largely dismantle the tobacco program. After leaving the state post, Koh joined the Harvard School of Public Health as associate dean, with his work focusing on cancer prevention, health disparities, tobacco control, and emergency preparations.
The state's current public health commissioner, John Auerbach, said Koh's varied experiences treating patients, running a large government agency, and overseeing academic research provide him with an unusually broad view of the nation's healthcare system.
"Those many different types of professions will give him useful insights in addressing the many different challenges that the country is facing," Auerbach said.
--more--"It's not all good, of course:
"Nominee for EPA is the latest to withdraw" by Globe Wire Services | March 26, 2009
WASHINGTON - In the latest nominee trouble for the Obama team, its pick for deputy administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency withdrew yesterday.
Jon Cannon, a professor of environmental law at the University of Virginia, said he's dropping out because of scrutiny of the now-defunct America's Clean Water Foundation, where Cannon once served on the board of directors and where the EPA's inspector general said in 2007 that $25 million in federal grants were mismanaged, according to press reports.
"I believe the energy and environmental challenges facing our nation are too great to delay confirmation for this position, and I do not wish to present any distraction to the agency," Cannon said in a statement....
--more--"
Daschle's Disgraces
Gregg's Graft
And guess where the next guy is employed:
"Weapons nominee promises scrutiny; Tells Senate panel he will fix broken acquisition system" by Bryan Bender, Globe Staff | March 27, 2009
WASHINGTON - Harvard professor Ashton B. Carter vowed yesterday to undertake a "program by program" review of all weapons systems if confirmed as President Obama's top Pentagon acquisition official, telling the Senate Armed Services Committee that he is concerned the scope of the crisis involving troubled weapons projects may be more extensive than believed....
Related: Following Zakheim and Pentagon trillions to Israel and 9-11
The Pentagon is struggling with major cost increases and technical failures in a series of big-ticket weapons programs. The crisis is widely blamed on a broken acquisition system in which overly optimistic projections from the military and defense contractors allow questionable projects to advance through the development process.
Other weapons systems that were designed for conventional wars are draining resources needed to address more pressing threats such as terrorists and insurgents, according to many defense officials and specialists.....
Awww, POOR PENTAGON!!!!!! Then END 'EM, shit bags!!!!!!!
Another area that requires additional scrutiny, Carter said, is Pentagon spending on contracts for services ranging from the mundane such as food service to oversight of weapons programs, a share of the defense budget that has doubled over the past decade....
Watch: Iraq for Sale
Also see: Where Did All the War Loot Go?
