LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: President-elect George W. Bush is set to announce more high level nominations today. CNN's Kelly Wallace has that for us live from Austin this morning. She has got the latest. Kelly, good morning.</s>KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Leon. We actually have some news for you. CNN has learned that President-elect Bush will announce his nominee for attorney general today. Now we have not been able to confirm who that nominee is. We do know a couple of things, though, we know that Montana Governor Marc Racicot pulled himself out of the running. Other possibilities that have been floating out there include Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating, as well as former Republican Senator John Ashcroft from Missouri. Viewers may recall that Ashcroft ran against the late Democratic Governor Mel Carnahan. Carnahan won, and so his wife, Jean, is going to serve in the Senate on his behalf. We do know some others things though. We do know that Mr. Bush is going to tap some fellow Republican governors to serve in his administration. He is expected to select New Jersey Governor Christie Whitman to serve as head of the Environmental Protection Agency. Now, environmentalists were quite critical of Mr. Bush's environmental record here in Texas. And so far, environmentalists seem to have mixed feelings about Whitman. While the New Jersey governor said that she had worked hard to protect open spaces and the coastline of New Jersey, environmentalists are somewhat concerned that there were cutbacks when it comes to staffing and budget for the enforcement of environmental laws in her state. Another announcement expected, Mr. Bush to name Republican Governor James Gilmore of Virginia to be the next chairman of the Republican National Committee. Leon, this is, of course, an important position. Republicans hoping to hold their majority in the U.S. Congress when the mid-term elections come two years from now -- Leon.</s>HARRIS: All right, thanks much, Kelly Wallace reporting live this morning from Austin, Texas. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Transition of Power: President-elect Bush Set to Announce More High Level Nominations Today