Retiring Rep. Cal Dooley (D-Calif.) has been named president and CEO of the National Food Processors Association. Dooley, a seven-term moderate from California’s agricultural Central Valley, will take the reins as the group changes its name to the Food Products Association.

In a statement, John Cady, who will retire as NFPA’s president and CEO on Jan. 7, called Dooley “a superb choice.”

[IMGCAP(1)] Dooley, a fourth-generation farmer who grows cotton, alfalfa and walnuts, is a senior member of the Agriculture Committee.

In the meantime, former four-term Rep. Bob Franks (R-N.J.) is coming back to Washington to join the lobbying shop Winning Strategies. Franks will serve as counsel to the bipartisan firm, joining four lobbyists there who have worked for Garden State lawmakers.

Franks, who failed to win races for Senator and governor in 2000 and 2001, will remain president of the HealthCare Institute of New Jersey while commuting to Washington a few days a week.

Inaugural Inspiration. The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies announced that “A Vision of America” will serve as the theme for the Jan. 20, 2005, ceremony.

The theme will commemorate both the 100th anniversary of then-President Theodore Roosevelt’s inauguration and the bicentennial of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark’s expedition.

“This Inaugural theme celebrates the achievements of the past while looking forward to the new possibilities that await today’s American visionaries,” the committee chairman, Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss.), said in a statement.

The theme will be reflected in the official program, as well as the traditional Statuary Hall luncheon attended by the president and Congressional leaders following the swearing-in ceremony.

Inspecting GPO. The Government Printing Office has tapped former Justice Department official Greg Brower to serve as inspector general.

“Greg has what it takes to lead the GPO’s Office of the Inspector General with independence, tenacity and energy,” said Public Printer Bruce James. “I will rely on Greg to keep Congress and me fully informed about the agency’s administration and operations.”

Most recently, Brower worked for the Justice Department’s Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, where he served as legislative counsel. In that capacity, Brower oversaw Congressional affairs for the nearly 100 U.S. Attorney’s offices nationwide.

— Louis Jacobson, Tory Newmyer and Jennifer Yachnin