SACRAMENTO — Undertaking a delicate ideological balancing act as he shapes his new administration, Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger named the head of a Santa Monica conservation group his secretary of environmental protection Wednesday but appointed a North Coast timber company executive as the agency's second-in-command.
Schwarzenegger's appointment of Terry Tamminen to head the state Environmental Protection Agency had been expected and was broadly cheered by environmentalists.
But the governor-elect turned in a different direction for the agency's No. 2 slot, naming James Branham, government affairs chief at Pacific Lumber and an official in former Gov. Pete Wilson's administration, as Cal-EPA's undersecretary. Schwarzenegger appointed another onetime Wilson official, Los Angeles attorney Maureen Gorsen, as the agency's deputy secretary.
Several other senior-level appointments by Schwarzenegger demonstrated the diversity of political views that have continued to characterize his nominees.
* Three officials named Wednesday to senior posts at the Department of Finance have worked under Senate Republican leader Jim Brulte of Rancho Cucamonga -- an important advisor to Schwarzenegger who campaigned with him during the recall.
The appointments of Michael Genest, 56, as chief deputy director for the budget; David Harper, 39, as deputy director of legislation; and H.D. Palmer, 43, as deputy director for external affairs underscored Brulte's influence in the new administration. They join an appointee named Tuesday, Cynthia Bryant, who also has ties to Brulte. Bryant was named Schwarzenegger's chief deputy legislative secretary.
Senate President Pro Tem John Burton (D-San Francisco), worked with Genest in resolving a summer stalemate over closing a $38-billion budget gap.
"He [Genest] knows the legislative process," Burton said. "He knows how it ticks.... He's a good guy, and it's a good appointment."
* For his secretary of Business, Transportation and Housing, Schwarzenegger chose a Democrat, Sunne Wright McPeak, who served for more than 15 years as a Contra Costa County supervisor. In recent years, McPeak has been president and chief executive of the Bay Area Council, a business group that develops public policy initiatives. She was appointed by Gov. Gray Davis to the state public power authority, created by the Legislature in 2001 to ensure the state maintains a steady supply of energy.
