Tower Mending; Nomination on Track

Former Sen. John Tower “should expect 100% recovery” from colon and rectal surgery, his doctor said Friday.

The good prognosis for Tower’s recovery keeps his nomination for secretary of defense on track, and aides said that Tower is not planning to request any delay in his confirmation hearings, which are set to begin Jan. 23.

Meanwhile, jockeying continued for the remaining two high-level posts in President-elect Bush’s Administration. New York Mayor Edward I. Koch met Friday with Bush and touted Customs Commissioner William von Raab for the newly created job of federal “drug czar.”

Koch’s recommendation was another step in an intensive campaign that Von Raab has conducted for the job. But transition aides said that Bush is not near a decision on the post and suggested that Von Raab probably had not helped his cause much with his campaign, which has included repeated letters and telephone calls from influential senators, representatives and other government officials.

Energy Post

On the other open job, secretary of energy, Bush aides say that the President-elect probably will announce a nominee early next week. Speculation continues to center around several candidates who have been under consideration for nearly a month, including former Republican Reps. Henson Moore of Louisiana, who is heavily backed by oil and gas industry officials, and James Broyhill of North Carolina.

In addition, electric utility industry officials were suggesting Keith Turley, a prominent Arizona Republican and chairman of Pinnacle West, the holding company for Arizona power firms. Turley has been active in utility groups like the Atomic Industrial Forum.

Monday, Bush may also announce a decision on his final senior White House staff position, a job he has been trying to convince his campaign pollster Robert Teeter to take. Teeter, who has been reluctant to move his family to Washington from Michigan, is set to accept a part-time arrangement, Bush aides said.

Meanwhile, Tower, 63, was listed in good condition at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas. His surgeon, Dr. R. D. Dignan, said he would have to spend about a week in the hospital.

Second Polyp

Tower, who was named for the defense post Dec. 16, underwent a physical examination on Dec. 27 during which doctors discovered a rectal polyp which was immediately removed, Dignan said. The same colonoscopy examination revealed a second polyp in the colon, or large intestine, which was removed Thursday along without about one foot of the intestine.

Tower called Bush earlier this week to inform him of the surgery. He apparently had not told Bush about the earlier surgery, Bush aides said.

Also Friday, Bush announced nominees for several senior positions in the State Department. Lawrence S. Eagleburger, a former foreign service officer who has been an aide and associate of former Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger for more than 20 years, will serve as deputy secretary of state, the department’s No. 2 job.

Bush’s campaign foreign policy aide Dennis Ross was tapped to head State’s policy planning office. Bush also picked nominees for three key ambassadorships--Vernon A. Walters to West Germany, Henry E. Catto to Great Britain and Donald P. Gregg to South Korea.

Walters is a veteran foreign policy trouble-shooter who now serves as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Catto and his wife, Jessica, are long-time friends of Bush and his wife, Barbara. Gregg served as the senior national security adviser on Bush’s vice presidential staff.

Staff writers Doyle McManus and Jim Mann contributed to this article.