Richard Carmona

In his 17 years in this desert city, Richard Carmona, President Bush's choice for U.S. surgeon general, has become one of Tucson's most visible and sometimes controversial figures. As a doctor and SWAT team member, his swashbuckling persona has made him a cult figure in law enforcement. But he also hasn't shied from controversy, which may well come up during his confirmation hearings. Carmona, for his part, is taking it one step at a time.

Richard Carmona, who served as U.S. surgeon general in George W. Bush's administration, announced Thursday that he will run as a Democrat for Arizona's open U.S. Senate seat. Carmona, who turns 62 this month, said in a statement that Washington is broken and that it was time "for honest people with real world experience to step forward. " "As a Special Forces medic in Vietnam, a trauma surgeon, and deputy sheriff in Arizona - we never had time for petty squabbles or gamesmanship - we had to work together to get results," he said in a statement.

Richard Carmona, President Bush's candidate for surgeon general, described himself Tuesday as a "people's doctor" who ably managed a trauma center, a hospital and a public health system in Tucson and still had time to moonlight on the sheriff's SWAT team. Carmona, 52, testifying at his confirmation hearing before a Senate committee, said his nomination as one of the nation's top doctors was the culmination of "my apparently disjointed career paths."

As then-Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona was preparing a report on world health problems, he received a detailed outline from officials at the Department of Health and Human Services. It suggested that he praise President Bush's initiative against AIDS in poor countries, and highlight American efforts to rebuild public health infrastructure in Iraq and Afghanistan. Instead, his report decried global pollution and violence against women.

A Senate committee unanimously approved the nomination of Dr. Richard Carmona as surgeon general Wednesday, despite questions about his medical record and work history. The vote by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee was conducted quickly at an informal meeting just off the Senate floor. The nomination now goes to the full Senate, which must confirm Carmona to the post, which has been vacant since Dr. David Satcher's term expired in February.

Richard Carmona, who served as U.S. surgeon general in George W. Bush's administration, announced Thursday that he will run as a Democrat for Arizona's open U.S. Senate seat. Carmona, who turns 62 this month, said in a statement that Washington is broken and that it was time "for honest people with real world experience to step forward. " "As a Special Forces medic in Vietnam, a trauma surgeon, and deputy sheriff in Arizona - we never had time for petty squabbles or gamesmanship - we had to work together to get results," he said in a statement.

Cultural traditions have to change before children begin to eat more healthfully and exercise more, U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona told an audience at a Pacoima school Tuesday, in the wake of reports on the prevalence of childhood obesity and adult diabetes in the Latino community.

More needs to be done to combat smoking and the disease burden it inflicts on society, U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona testified Tuesday in the government's racketeering case against cigarette makers. "There is clearly work that needs to be done in the future," Carmona told U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler in Washington as the government laid out a case for changes in the tobacco industry if the judge concludes that it violated racketeering law.

When Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson first sat down to talk with Richard Carmona about becoming surgeon general, the candidate seemed almost too good to be true. An up-from-nothing New York City street kid from Harlem. A high school dropout turned decorated Vietnam War veteran turned trauma surgeon. A moonlighting SWAT team member who shot a suspect dead to protect others and dangled from a helicopter in a daring mountain-side rescue.

Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona said Tuesday that he supports the banning of tobacco products -- the first time that the government's top doctor and public health advocate has made such a strong statement about the contentious subject. Testifying at a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on smokeless tobacco and "reduced risk" tobacco products, Carmona was asked whether he would "support the abolition of all tobacco products." "I would at this point, yes," he replied.

President Bush's first surgeon general testified Tuesday that his speeches were censored to match administration political positions and that he was prevented from giving the public accurate scientific information on issues such as stem cell research and teen pregnancy prevention. "Anything that doesn't fit into the political appointees' ideological, theological or political agenda is ignored, marginalized or simply buried," Dr. Richard H.

More needs to be done to combat smoking and the disease burden it inflicts on society, U.S. Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona testified Tuesday in the government's racketeering case against cigarette makers. "There is clearly work that needs to be done in the future," Carmona told U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler in Washington as the government laid out a case for changes in the tobacco industry if the judge concludes that it violated racketeering law.

Cultural traditions have to change before children begin to eat more healthfully and exercise more, U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona told an audience at a Pacoima school Tuesday, in the wake of reports on the prevalence of childhood obesity and adult diabetes in the Latino community.

Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona said Tuesday that he supports the banning of tobacco products -- the first time that the government's top doctor and public health advocate has made such a strong statement about the contentious subject. Testifying at a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on smokeless tobacco and "reduced risk" tobacco products, Carmona was asked whether he would "support the abolition of all tobacco products." "I would at this point, yes," he replied.

On a unanimous voice vote, the Senate Tuesday confirmed Arizona trauma surgeon and SWAT team deputy Richard H. Carmona as surgeon general. Carmona will be commissioned as a three-star admiral in the public health corps, commanding more than 5,600 commissioned officers, although he will have only a small staff. Successful surgeons general have taken advantage of the bully pulpit of their office to promote public health causes.

A Senate committee unanimously approved the nomination of Dr. Richard Carmona as surgeon general Wednesday, despite questions about his medical record and work history. The vote by the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee was conducted quickly at an informal meeting just off the Senate floor. The nomination now goes to the full Senate, which must confirm Carmona to the post, which has been vacant since Dr. David Satcher's term expired in February.

On a unanimous voice vote, the Senate Tuesday confirmed Arizona trauma surgeon and SWAT team deputy Richard H. Carmona as surgeon general. Carmona will be commissioned as a three-star admiral in the public health corps, commanding more than 5,600 commissioned officers, although he will have only a small staff. Successful surgeons general have taken advantage of the bully pulpit of their office to promote public health causes.

President Bush on Tuesday nominated an Arizona doctor with an action-hero resume to be surgeon general, traditionally the nation's most prominent platform for addressing the public on health issues. Named to the post was Richard Carmona, a 52-year-old Arizona trauma surgeon, part-time lawman and former Green Beret who killed a man 30 months ago in a shootout at a Tucson intersection.

Richard Carmona, President Bush's candidate for surgeon general, described himself Tuesday as a "people's doctor" who ably managed a trauma center, a hospital and a public health system in Tucson and still had time to moonlight on the sheriff's SWAT team. Carmona, 52, testifying at his confirmation hearing before a Senate committee, said his nomination as one of the nation's top doctors was the culmination of "my apparently disjointed career paths."

When Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson first sat down to talk with Richard Carmona about becoming surgeon general, the candidate seemed almost too good to be true. An up-from-nothing New York City street kid from Harlem. A high school dropout turned decorated Vietnam War veteran turned trauma surgeon. A moonlighting SWAT team member who shot a suspect dead to protect others and dangled from a helicopter in a daring mountain-side rescue.