Laurence Silberman, co-chairman
The 68-year-old former federal appeals court judge has a resume that has drawn the most criticism of any of the members of the president's panel to review prewar intelligence on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program.

Silberman, a Harvard Law graduate and outspoken conservative, has presided over some of the most critical and criticized decisions on national security in recent decades.

For liberal activists, Silberman's appointment threw the panel's objectivity into doubt. They point to several rulings and past appointments as proof that the jurist is a political partisan.

One such case involved Silberman's role in overturning Col. Oliver North's conviction for his part in the Iran-Contra affair. North had been convicted for aiding and abetting the obstruction of a congressional inquiry and destruction of documents. He was also convicted for accepting an illegal gratuity in connection with the Reagan administration’s efforts to sell weapons to Iran in exchange for hostages and to funnel the proceeds to Contra rebels in Nicaragua.

In 1990, Silberman was one of two judges who threw out the conviction, citing North's immunity for his famous congressional testimony and its possible impact on witnesses in his trial.

Silberman also played a critical role in the expansion of federal powers to monitor suspected terrorists after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. He served on the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which authorized the increased use of wiretaps sought under the USA Patriot Act.

For the judge, the intense political interests at stake in Washington will be a familiar stomping ground. In addition to his role on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Silberman held key roles in several past Republican administrations.

As a 35-year-old attorney, Silberman took a position as undersecretary of Labor during the Nixon administration. He worked through the remainder of Richard Nixon's term and President Ford's, serving as deputy U.S. attorney general from 1974 to 1975 and then U.S. ambassador to Yugoslavia from 1975 until 1977.

During the Carter administration, Silberman worked in the private sector, serving as a fellow at the Washington, D.C. think tank the American Enterprise Institute and as executive vice president of the San Francisco Crocker National Bank.

In 1981, he joined the Defense Policy Board, advising President Reagan on arms control and disarmament issues during the president's first term.

He worked in that capacity until 1985 when President Reagan appointed the 49-year-old Silberman to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

During his tenure on the court, and in many of his speeches, Silberman has not shied away from taking an outspoken stand. In 2002, he accused the Supreme Court of "ducking" affirmative action cases and questioned court decisions in abortion, church, and states' and gay rights.

"I do not think it even can be seriously argued that any of these lines of decision had a shadow of true constitutional justification," Silberman said. "How does the court get away with it? It maintains its legitimacy so long as its activist opinions coincide with the views of a broad national consensus of elite opinion."

Silberman also publicly accused aides in the Clinton administration of "literally and figuratively declar[ing] war" on independent counsel Kenneth Starr.

When named to President Bush's commission, Silberman said he would focus on the need to bolster confidence in the United States’ ability to gather and analyze intelligence.

"The country and the president must maintain confidence in the intelligence community, and I will do all I can to serve that goal," he said in a statement.

His appointment to the president's commission sparked immediate criticism, in particular from liberal interest groups and some Democrats.

"This is not a statesman of the sort the president should be seeking to preside over this crucial and sensitive investigation," Nan Aron, head of the Alliance for Justice, said.

But supporters point to his experience during Iran-Contra and other critical cases as giving him the knowledge needed to fully examine the issues behind pre-war intelligence gaps.

"I think Judge Silberman is one of the most, if not the most, knowledgeable person on the federal bench about the intersection of law and national security," Viet Dinh, a former clerk for Silberman, told the Chicago Tribune.

-- Compiled by Lee Banville for the Online NewsHour