Monica Goodling he ain't. The new special assistant to President Obama managing the appointment process for lawyers in the administration is University of Washington law professor Paul Miller. This includes, but is not limited to, appointees in the Department of Justice.
"I will also be leading the political appointments process for the Department of Education and a host of other regulatory agencies across the government: I will be managing the appointments process for political positions that directly impact disabled people and disability programs through the government," Miller said in an e-mail.
That last sentences is no random throwaway. Below the fold, some background on Paul Miller and his accomplishments.
At the University of Washington Law School, Paul Miller is the director of the Disability Studies Program and a Faculty Associate of the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies.
An internationally renowned expert in disability and employment discrimination law, Professor Miller joined the faculty in 2004, after spending twelve years in public service in Washington, DC. He was one of the longest serving commissioners of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency which enforces employment discrimination laws. While at the EEOC, Professor Miller spearheaded the development of the agency's successful mediation program. He has also served as the White House liaison to the disability community and as Deputy Director of the U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs. Prior to joining the U.S. government, Professor Miller was the director of litigation for the Western Law Center for Disability Rights (now the Disability Law Center) and taught at the law schools of Loyola University and UCLA.
This will not be Miller's first experience with the Obama team. He joined the transition staff shortly after Election Day, working on labor and employment issues. The university expects Miller to return to Seattle for fall semester 2009, implying that his responsibilities are only for the initial staffing of administration lawyers rather than overseeing the process for the rest of Obama's tenure as president.
Even if Miller is not in the administration for the long haul, the appointments he will manage in the coming weeks will shape Justice. We did not expect appointments under Obama to mirror the dreadful, criminal practices of the Bush administration, so in that sense Miller's new job is not a surprise. It is, however, welcome news.