Since appointing William Lynn, a lobbyist for Raytheon, to the no. 2 position at the pentagon, Obama signed a much tougher ethics measure for executive branch appointments as his first executive order. Watchdog groups are asking for Obama to retract this earlier appointment that would clearly violate one of his first acts as president. I hope Obama can fix this or provide some kind of valid explanation. This appointment is being held up for further evaluation right now. I don't think it is enough to grandfather in this earlier appointment. I guess a lobbyist free Washington would be impossible at this point in history so it may take a few election cycles to flush them all out, but I really hope Obama's new executive order will squash this appointment.

Is this another valid case of not wanting to change too much too fast? Or is it the reality that keeping Robert Gates means living with his input in defense appointments?

Waltham, Mass.-based Raytheon, with 2007 sales of $21.3 billion, specializes in worldwide defense and homeland security-related markets.

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[EDITED 1/24/09:]

According the Chicago Tribune, Robert Gates was responsible for this appointment (though the Obama Team approved it). Obama's executive order could create the first conflict with this holdover from the Bush administration.

...Gates pushed hard for Lynn's appointment and favored him over other officials suggested by the Obama transition team. At a news conference Thursday, Gates said he was impressed with Lynn and argued he should get the job despite the lobbying ban.

"I asked that an exception be made because I felt that he could play the role of the deputy in a better manner than anybody else that I saw," Gates said. - Julian E. Barnes - the Chicago Tribune
full article...