Obama fills out Justice roster

President Obama has signaled in his first week of office that his administration is serious about doing away with some of the most controversial policies of President George W. Bush and about making government more transparent. One agency whose credibility has been battered over the last eight years is the Justice Department, where allegations of politicization under former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales have now been confirmed by the agency's inspector general.

To help him restore the department's good standing and sort through the legal complexities surrounding the war on terror and other pressing issues, Obama on Thursday named several sub-Cabinet appointees to support his chosen Attorney General, Eric Holder (who is still awaiting confirmation from Congress).

David Kris, currently deputy counsel for Time Warner Inc. and an adjunct law professor at Georgetown University, has been selected as the assistant attorney general for national security. A top Justice official under both President Clinton and Bush, Kris has a great deal of experience dealing with Congress and with the National Security Council, and has been a vocal critic of warrantless wiretapping.

San Francisco attorney and former federal prosecutor Tony West is Obama's choice to lead the department's civil division. West played a key role in successfully busting a large Internet child pornography ring several years ago and was an early Obama booster, helping to raise nearly $65 million for the then-candidate in California.

To head up the criminal division, Obama has chosen Lanny Breuer, a successful private practice lawyer who represented Clinton during his impeachment trial. AP reports that, in an interesting twist, Breuer, who represented Roger Clemens in hearings last year over allegations of steroid use, will now be in charge of the agency investigating the baseball star.

And finally, Christine Varney, a former Federal Trade Commission member who has represented corporations like Ebay and MySpace in her private practice, has been selected as assistant attorney general for antitrust. With a reputation as an effective negotiator, Varney has considerable experience in oversight of the tech and health care industries.

Check out the blog Lost in Transition, a joint effort of Government Executive and National Journal.