Deputy Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services: Who Is Janey Thornton?
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
	On April 1, 2009, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, with the approval of President barack Obama, appointed Dr. Janey Thornton the next Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services. Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services administers programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as Food Stamps), the Food Program for Women, Infants and Children, and the school meals programs.    A native of Kentucky, Thornton earned a BS in home economics at Western Kentucky University, an MS in vocational education and school administration at the University of Kentucky, and a PhD in hotel and restaurant management from Iowa State University in 2007; her dissertation was titled, “Factors Influencing the Effectiveness of School Foodservice Programs.”    Thornton was School Nutrition Director for Hardin County Schools in Elizabethtown, Kentucky (pop. 25,942), for more than 25 years. During this time, the district, which serves the entire county (pop. 97,949), doubled in size to more than 15,000 students. Thornton promoted to use of healthier foods in schools and initiated a few reforms, such as eliminating deep-fat fryers in 1995, establishing a central night bakery in 1992 to provide fresh-baked bread to students in the morning, and using locally grown produce whenever possible.    Thornton has been active in the 55,000-member School Nutrition Association (SNA), culminating in her term as President during the 2006-2007 school year. She also served as President of the School Nutrition Foundation (a non-lobbying arm of the SNA) and was an active member of the Global Child Nutrition Foundation. She has held leadership roles in the Kentucky School Nutrition Association and was Chairwoman of the SNA Public Policy and Legislative Committee. In 2008, Thornton was a member of the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board, which advertises and promotes the drinking of milk.   Although the press has generally reported that Thornton was a non-controversial selection, in fact her appointment was criticized by those advocating nutritional reform in the school meals programs.   The critics contend that school food relies too heavily on the Agriculture Department’s commodity food programs, which they argue supply foods manufactured by large corporations whose products are unhealthily high in fats, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and calories. These reformers point out that while Thornton initiated some changes in Hardin County, the SNA, which is funded by agribusiness and large processed food manufacturers, has generally opposed far-reaching reform in school nutrition.    Press Release of Thornton’s Appointment Official Biography Vilsack Makes an Industry-Friendly Pick to Head the School Lunch Program (by Tom Philpott, Grist.org) - Matt Bewig

Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services: Who is Jim Miller?
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
	James W. “Jim” Miller, confirmed as under secretary of agriculture for farm and foreign agricultural services on April 2, 2009, is a longtime farmer from the state of Washington who also has lobbied on behalf of agricultural interests in Washington, DC.   Miller, 59, graduated from Washington State University, where he received a degree in business administration, with an emphasis on economics.   He operated a fourth-generation family farm in eastern Washington for more than 20 years, producing wheat, barley, lentils and canola, and was active in several farm organizations. He served as president of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers in 1982-1983, and president of the National Association of Wheat Growers in 1987-1988.   In addition to those responsibilities, Miller was a member of the Agriculture Policy Advisory Committee for Trade from 1986-1992 and was appointed in 1994 by Secretary of Agriculture  Mike Espy to the US–Canada Joint Commission on Grains, which resolves grain trade issues between the two countries. During his time on the commission, he served as co-chairman.   Miller moved to Washington, DC, in 1995 to serve as vice president for government affairs at the National Association of Wheat Growers, lobbying on behalf of farmers.   He joined the National Farmers Union (NFU) in February 1999 as a government relations representative, eventually becoming chief economist and later chief of staff for the organization in Washington, DC. In these capacities, Miller focused on policy analysis and issue advocacy for the organization’s membership.   Miller also served four years as senior analyst for agriculture and trade on the majority staff of the Senate Budget Committee. From 2004-2008, he provided agricultural policy analysis for Senator Kent Conrad (D-ND).   Miller and his wife, Sandy, have two sons and two grandsons.   Farm Foundation Biography (pdf) President Obama Announces Under Secretaries For Agriculture Department (Press Release) Undersecretary Nominee Rooted in E. Wash. (by Matthew Weaver, Capital Press) Obama Picks Former Conrad Staffer for USDA Post (Sen. Kent Conrad press release)

Chairman of the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation: Who is John Cornyn?
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
	Replacing Edward “Ted” Kennedy as chairman of the board of trustees for the James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation is U.S. Senator John Cornyn III (R-TX), one of the most conservative members of the Senate. The Foundation was founded by Congress in 1986 to encourage the teaching of the U.S. Constitution in secondary schools.   Born February 2, 1952, in Houston, Texas, Cornyn was raised by Atholene Gale Danley and John Cornyn Jr. His father, a B-17 pilot in World War II, served 31 years in the U.S. Air Force and, later taught at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. Because of his father’s military service, Cornyn moved a lot while growing up. He attended high school in Japan and college at Trinity University in Texas, graduating in 1973 with a degree in journalism after entertaining thoughts of going into medicine. He earned a Juris Doctorate from St. Mary’s University School of Law in 1977 and an LL.M. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1995.   Cornyn practiced law as a private attorney and was a partner in the firm of Groce, Locke, and Hebdon until being elected in 1984 as a Bexar County (San Antonio) district court judge. Six years later, he was elected to the Texas Supreme Court, where he served for seven years. His political rise continued in 1999, when he was elected Texas Attorney General.   From his post as AG, Cornyn ran for the U.S. Senate in 2002, and easily defeated Democrat Ron Kirk, then-mayor of Dallas. He won re-election in 2008, beating Democrat Rick Noriega.   During his tenure in the Senate, Cornyn has forged a reputation as one of the most conservative Republicans in the upper house. National Journal ranked him the fourth-most conservative U.S. senator in 2006. He was a loyal supporter of his longtime friend, President George W. Bush, and his committee assignments have included seats on the agriculture, budget, finance and judiciary committees.   Cornyn surprised observers during the public debate over Sonia Sotomayor’s nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court when he repudiated remarks by Rush Limbaugh and Newt Gingrich that she was a racist.   Cornyn currently serves as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, putting him in charge of the GOP’s Senate election efforts for the 2010 campaign. -Noel Brinkerhoff   Official Biography (johncornyn.com) Wikipedia Profile Biography (U.S. Senate) John Cornyn Voting Record (Project Vote Smart) John Cornyn Repudiates Gingrich And Limbaugh Comments About Sotomayor (Huffington Post) James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation (AllGov)

Assistant Secretary of Energy for Fossil Energy: Who Is James Markowsky?
Saturday, February 13, 2010
	President Obama’s selection to serve in the Department of Energy as Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, Dr. James J. Markowsky, is an energy industry veteran with a strong technical background in research and development. While exciting and novel energy technologies like solar and wind get all the press, the U.S. (and the world) will continue to rely primarily on fossil fuels for decades to come. Thus, any strategies to meet the global climate crisis will have to include a fossil fuel component. Nominated May 28, 2009, and confirmed August 7, Markowsky serves as the primary policy advisor on issues involving coal, oil, and natural gas, including research and development efforts in those areas. The Office of Fossil Energy oversees approximately 600 research and development projects, ranging from development of zero-emissions power plants to energy facilities that transform coal, biomass and other fuels into commercial products to new technologies that can extract oil from existing fields that currently are unreachable. The office is also responsible for managing the country’s underground supply of oil for use in case of emergencies, known as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, and running three research labs that conduct fossil energy exploration.      Born circa 1945 in occupied Germany to Ukrainian refugees who in 1948 emigrated to the U.S., Markowsky earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Pratt Institute in 1967, an M.S. and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University in 1970 and 1971, respectively, and an M.S. in Industrial Management from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1981.    Shortly after earning his doctorate, Markowsky went to work at American Electric Power Service Corporation (AEP), where he remained through 2000. AEP is a large investor-owned electric utility, which is among the nation’s largest generators of electricity and owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system.  Markowsky began his thirty-year career at AEP in 1971 as a Senior Engineer in AEP’s Mechanical Division.  In 1977, he was named Program Manager for AEP’s pressurized fluidized bed combustion development program.  He was named head of the Mechanical Engineering Division and elected Assistant Vice President in 1984; Vice President for Mechanical Engineering in 1987; Senior Vice President and Chief Engineer in 1988; Executive Vice President for Engineering and Construction in 1993; and Executive Vice President for Power Generation in 1996, a post he held at his retirement in 2000.   After his retirement from AEP, Markowsky was President of Research and Development Solutions, LLC, from 2004 to 2005, which had a $41 million contract to provide Research and Development Support Services to the DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory. He is or has been a member of the National Research Council Committee on America’s Energy Future, Chair of the National Academy of Engineering Section 6 - Electric Power/Energy Systems Committee, the Association of Edison Illuminating Companies Power Generation Committee, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Industry Advisory Board, Chairman of the Coal Utilization Research Council, the Electric Power Research Institute Research Advisory Committee, and Chairman of the EPRI Fossil Power Plants Business Unit Council Steering Committee. He has 26 publications to his name in the area of power generation and fossil energy, and he served as an Adjunct Associate Professor at City College of New York from 1975 to 1977.     Markowsky and his wife, Carolyn, reside in Columbus, Ohio, and have a daughter, Lynn Berry.  Markowsky contributed to candidates from both parties in the 1990s, although mainly to Republicans. He contributed $500 to the congressional campaign of Republican Ralph Regula in 1994, $250 each to Republicans George Voinovich (Senate) and Bob Ney (House of Representatives) in 1995, and $250 to Democrat Ted Strickland, who was running for re-election to Congress in 1998.  - Matt Bewig   Official Biography at the Department of Energy website Statement Before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (pdf) Office of Fossil Energy (AllGov)

Marine Mammal Commission: Who is Daryl Boness?
Saturday, February 13, 2010
	Daryl J. Boness, nominated on January 19, 2010, by President Barack Obama to be the next chairman of the Marine Mammal Commission, is a retired scientist who spent most of his career working at the National Zoo and studying seals, sea lions and walruses.   A resident of Hartford, Maine, Boness received his Bachelor of Arts in psychology and biology from Cornell College in 1972, his Master of Arts in human psychophysiology from Hollins College in 1973, and his PhD in animal behavior/behavioral ecology from Dalhousie University (in Canada) in 1979.   He began working at the National Zoo in 1978 as a curator of mammals (with a focus on seals and polar bears) and became a full-time research zoologist in 1985. As a curator he designed exhibits, managed a broad range of captive mammals, and supervised animal caretakers.   Boness’ research focused on the reproductive behavior of pinnipeds (seals, sea lions, and walruses), publishing more than 100 scientific papers, book chapters, and major reports. He has studied how ecological, phylogenetic, and social factors affect the reproductive strategies (mating behavior and parental care) of males and females.   In 1994, he became a member of the Marine Mammal Commission’s Committee of Scientific Advisors, for which he has served as chairman.   He eventually became head of research and the conservation biology department at the National Zoo, retiring as a senior scientist from the Smithsonian Institution.   In 2003, Boness left the National Zoo at a time when many of its top experts were leaving because of problems and efforts to revitalize the zoo. “It has been a fairly stressful and troubling time for the zoo for the last couple of years,” Boness told The Washington Post.   After retiring from the Smithsonian (while continuing his research associate status), Boness accepted an appointment as a research professor with a joint appointment to the Department of Wildlife Ecology and the School of Marine Science at the University of Maine (Orono).   He has also served as an adjunct or research professor at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada, American University in Washington, DC, and La Rochelle University in France.   His activities with other scientific organizations include serving as editor-in-chief of the scientific journal Marine Mammal Science; on a Negotiated Rulemaking Committee to revise the USDA/APHIS Marine Mammal Welfare Regulations; a NASA panel to investigate the possible effects of sonic booms on marine mammals; and review panels for the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Office of Naval Research, and the Alaska Department of Fish & Game. -Noel Brinkerhoff   Meet the Team: Daryl J. Boness (Antarctic Expedition) President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts, 1/19/10 (White House) Key Staffers Depart Zoo During Push for Reforms (by James V. Grimaldi, Washington Post) Marine Mammal Commission (AllGov)

Nuclear Commission Nominee William Magwood Accused of Conflict of Interests
Sunday, February 07, 2010
	William Magwood’s nomination by President Barack Obama to serve on the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has come under attack by groups on the left claiming the nominee has too cozy of a relationship with the nuclear power industry. Environmental organizations and government watchdogs oppose Magwood, whose confirmation hearing is scheduled for Tuesday (February 9), because of his long history of supporting and profiting from nuclear power. The opposition argues the NRC needs to have more impartial members on its board.   Magwood’s background includes serving as director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy before founding his own energy consulting firm, Advanced Energy Strategies. He also was president of Secure Energy Inc. for four years.   In a letter to Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), chair of the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works which will conduct Magwood’s hearing, the Project on Government Oversight wrote that “Magwood does not have the independence from the nuclear energy industry to effectively regulate the uses of nuclear materials and facilities in the United States, enforce standards necessary to protect health and safety and minimize danger to life or property, and hold licensees accountable for damage to property caused by nuclear accidents.” -Noel Brinkerhoff   Nuke Commission Nominee William Magwood Faces Questions About Energy Industry Ties (by Steven Spires, OpenSecrets.org) POGO Opposes Nomination of William Magwood to NRC (Project on Government Oversight)

Ambassador to Suriname: Who Is John Nay?
Saturday, January 23, 2010
	President Barack Obama appointed a new ambassador for the South American nation of Suriname, a relatively prosperous country in northern South America with a fairly well-developed mining and manufacturing sector, whose population is almost evenly divided amongst Hindus, Protestants, Catholics, and Muslims. Nay was sworn in on August 13, 2009.   Born circa 1954 in Louisiana to Jack and Geraldine Nay, John R. Nay grew up in Battle Creek, Michigan, and attended Battle Creek Academy, a Seveth Day Adventist school. He earned a BA (1976) and MA (1977) in History from Andrews University and a Masters in National Security Strategy from the National Defense University in the late 1990s. In 1974, he served his Adventist mission in Japan as an English teacher, an experience he later said “played a significant part in my joining the Foreign Service by helping to stimulate my interest in international affairs and the world.”    Nay joined the State Department in 1977. His first overseas assignment was in Taiwan, from 1978 to 1980, followed by a posting to Singapore from 1980 to 1982. He returned to the U.S. to serve as an analyst on Cambodia and Korea from 1982 to 1985. Nay served at the U.S. Consulate General in Calgary, Canada, from 1985 to 1989, returning to the scene of his first foreign posting to serve as consular chief at the American Institute in Taiwan, in Taipei, Taiwan, from 1990 to 1993. Nay served in Washington, D.C., as Deputy Director for Pacific Island Affairs from 1993 to 1995, and then headed to Africa to be Regional Consular Officer for southern Africa, based in Johannesburg, South Africa, from 1996 to 1999. Continuing to serve overseas, he became Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi, India, from 1999 to 2002. Back in Washington, DC, Nay served from 2002 to 2003 as a Senior Inspector in the State Department’s Office of the Inspector General, and from 2003 to 2006 as Office Director for African Regional and Security Affairs in the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs. He returned to Canada to be Consul General in Toronto from 2006 to 2009.    Nay, who has visited all 50 states, is language qualified in Chinese (Mandarin).  He and his wife, Judith Ashdon Nay, have three children, Janelle, Jaclyn, and Jordan.  - Matt Bewig   State Department Biography Nay, An Adventist, Takes Oath as U.S. Ambassador to Suriname (by Kevin D. Gurubatham, Adventist News)

Ambassador to Latvia: Who Is Judith Garber?
Saturday, January 23, 2010
	President Obama has chosen a career diplomat, Judith (Judy) G. Garber, to represent the U.S. as ambassador to Latvia, the first career diplomat to the small Baltic nation since Brian E. Carlson served in Riga from 2001 to 2004. Garber’s two immediate predecessors, Catherine Todd Bailey and Chuck. Larson, Jr., were non-career appointees who raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the 2004 presidential campaign of George W. Bush. Garber was sworn in on August 14, 2009.   Garber earned her bachelor’s degree at Georgetown University. Prior to joining the Foreign Service in 1984, Garber worked at the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and the Department of the Treasury. A career foreign service officer, Garber’s previous overseas postings include Economic Counselor in Madrid, Spain; Deputy Economic Counselor in Tel Aviv, Israel; Economic Officer in Prague, Czech Republic; Economic Officer in Mexico City, Mexico; and Vice Consul in Seville, Spain. Garber’s Washington assignments have included Director for Overseas Development Finance in the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, and director of North Central European Affairs in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs from 2007 to 2009, overseeing bilateral relations with the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Bulgaria and Slovenia.   Garber is married with two children.  -Matt Bewig   State Department Biography Testimony Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (pdf) US Ambassador Visits Latvian University (by Thorsten Chr. Pohlmann)

Why are Republicans Objecting to So Many of Obama’s Nominations of Women?
Thursday, January 21, 2010
	Congressional delays of President Barack Obama’s appointments to federal posts are considerably worse than they were during the beginning of former President George W. Bush’s first term. After one year in office, Bush was still waiting for 70 appointees to be confirmed. Obama, however, is waiting on 176. The longest and most high-profile delays seem to be those of women. While the reasons vary for Obama’s pending confirmations, many of the delays originate with Republicans.   Miriam Sapiro, selected to be a deputy U.S. trade representative, was held up because Republican Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky wanted to send a message from the tobacco industry: oppose Canada’s banning of flavored cigarettes like cloves, or else. Bunning reportedly relented after Democrats agreed to put a Republican, Michael Khouri, on the Federal Maritime Commission, however Sapiro remains unconfirmed nine months after her nomination.   On February 11, 2009, President Obama nominated Dawn Johnsen to head the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, which is responsible for giving legal advice to the president. Republicans objected to her support for abortion rights and her criticisms of the Bush administration’s use of torture, and threatened to filibuster if the nomination came to the full Senate. The election of Scott Brown to represent Massachusetts in the Senate on January 20, 2010, may allow the Republicans to kill Johnsen’s nomination.   The nomination of Lael Brainard to be under secretary of the Treasury for international affairs (overseeing the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and issues relating to international taxes) has been held up since March 23, 2009, because Republican Charles Grassley of Iowa objected to Brainard’s initial failure to acknowledge her late payments of property taxes. The amount in question: $1,401.09. Curiously, Brainard’s husband, Kurt Campbell, flew through the confirmation process when he was nominated to head the State Department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.   Martha Johnson’s nomination to be the administrator of the General Service Administration (GSA), which provides procurement services to federal agencies, was approved by the Senate Committee on Environmental and Public Works in June. But Sen. Kit Bond (R-Missouri) put a hold on Johnson’s confirmation as part of a battle in which he wants a new federal office building built in Kansas City.   The delays also affect the judicial branch. President Obama nominated Marisa Demeo for a seat on the D.C. Superior Court on March 24, 2009, and the Senate Judiciary Committee approved her on May 20. However, Demeo, who is Mexican-American and lesbian, remains unconfirmed. - David Wallechinsky   Help Wanted (by Annie Lowery, Foreign Policy) Legislative Limbo Strands Many of Obama’s Nominees (by Helene Cooper, New York Times) All Obama Nominations and Appointments (White House) The Long Wait: Who is Obama GSA Nominee Martha Johnson? (by Matt Bewig, AllGov)