The Associated Press
©
RICHMOND
A person with South Hampton Roads roots was among three Cabinet appointments announced by Gov.-elect Bob McDonnell on Tuesday in the State Capitol.
Chesapeake native Lisa Hicks-Thomas, a lawyer who worked under McDonnell when he was attorney general, was named secretary of administration. She will be responsible for overseeing several agencies, including the State Board of Elections.
The other appointees introduced Tuesday were Sean Connaughton as transportation secretary and Todd Haymore as secretary of agriculture and forestry.
McDonnell said the selection of Connaughton, a Northern Virginian who worked in former President George W. Bush's administration, is good news for Hampton Roads because of his expertise on maritime issues at a time when privatization and expansion of the ports are being discussed.
Connaughton said he's also familiar with the region's roads, having spent years commuting to the Coast Guard station at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base.
Connaughton, like current secretary Pierce Homer, is from Northern Virginia, a region beset by its own transportation problems. And his appointment comes at a time when some Hampton Roads officials have complained that the region isn't getting its fair share of state road dollars compared with Northern Virginia.
Hicks-Thomas is the first of McDonnell's nine appointees so far with strong ties to Hampton Roads. Secretary of the Commonwealth- designate Janet Polarek attended Regent University in Virginia Beach, to which McDonnell has ties.
Hicks-Thomas is the fifth person from McDonnell's attorney general staff to join his administration team.
Haymore, the current commissioner of the state's Agriculture and Consumer Services Department, is the second member of Gov. Timothy M.
Kaine's staff whom McDonnell has tapped for a high-profile position in his administration.
McDonnell said he will reveal his picks for the remaining three slots in his Cabinet by early January.
Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com
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Let me know when little Bobby McD announces when he will be walking on water.
Again?
Shortly after George W. Bush was elected for the first time, I was in D.C. for a conference. While in a news stand in Union Station, waiting for a train, a man came in wearing a 10-gallon cowboy hat and smoking a cigar. The clerk at the counter politely asked him to put out the cigar as smoking is illegal in the train station. The man replied, "We own this God[bleeped]ed town now, we'll do anything we please!" And he continued to puff away. I turned to a friend and said, "Hold on to your hat. These are going to be a bad few years." I say to Virginia now, "Hold on to your hat. You ain't seen nothing yet."
!!!!!
No Democrats!...and make them take a lie detector test just to be sure. Hmmm...too bad we didn't make Obama take one. He sure does lie.
Now where
was Obama mentioned in this story? And your proof about his lying?
Nice try
Actually Haymore is a Democrat. I didn't vote for McDonnell, but I have to commend him on these two picks. Both highly qualified, pragmatic problem solvers.