EDITORIAL BUSH'S FORWARD MOVE.

THE new president-elect, George W. Bush, has gotten off to a strong start with the early nominees to his cabinet - and fulfilling a campaign promise before he's taken office.

Bush signaled his desire to appoint an ethnically diverse administration by announcing he wants Colin Powell to be his secretary of state; he wants Condoleezza Rice, also an African-American, as his national security adviser; and he's chosen Texas Supreme Court Justice Al Gonzales as his general counsel.

Of his five nominees so far, one is a white male.

Bush has tapped two African-Americans, two women and one Latino.

More importantly, the nominees are people of distinction, character and quality.

In addition to the well-respected Powell, Rice is a former Stanford University provost and adviser to former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Bush who noted that the president-elect will ``have an administration that is inclusive.''

The jockeying for favoritism has already begun, and the extreme right wing of the Republican party is not going to let Bush forget it helped get him elected by the narrowest of margins.

But if he remains true to his stated intention of governing from the center, Bush must appoint the best and the brightest, and the most diverse cabinet and staff members to lend credibility to his administration. That will underscore the notion that diversity is important and that he respects the contributions of all Americans, regardless of race, gender and cultural background.

Bush is starting off on a positive course.