THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 
              Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: Thursday, May 23, 1996                TAG: 9605230399
SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A7   EDITION: FINAL 
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS 
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                        LENGTH:   48 lines

PERRY TO RECOMMEND CNO BY WEEK'S END

Defense Secretary William Perry says he will recommend by week's end a successor to Adm. Jeremy ``Mike'' Boorda as chief of naval operations.

Perry did not say Wednesday who the front-runners were to be CNO, the highest ranking uniformed officer in the Navy. His recommendation will be made to President Clinton, who will nominate a candidate to the Senate for final confirmation.

``The qualities that I would look for are the same qualities I looked for when I selected Admiral Boorda,'' Perry said in his Pentagon office during a photo-taking session with Lithuanian Defense Minister Linas Linkevicius.

Perry said that when he began thinking of a successor, after Boorda shot himself to death last Thursday, he reviewed the letter of recommendation for Boorda he sent to Clinton in 1994.

``I was looking for a person who could first of all be a leader in the Navy, someone who can bring the Navy together, represent the best in the Navy and have the Navy people rally around this new chief of naval operations and feel proud of him,'' Perry said.

``I think there are several very strong candidates in the Navy for that position. I will recommend one of these to the president. I expect to do that this week.''

Among those believed to be in the running is Adm. Jay L. Johnson, who has been the acting chief of naval operations since Boorda's death. Johnson, the current vice chief of naval operations, previously was commander of the Norfolk-based 2nd Fleet.

Others include Adm. Leighton Smith Jr., head of the NATO-led peacekeeping mission in Bosnia; Adm. Joseph Prueher, commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Command; and Vice Adm. Joseph Lopez, one of the deputy chiefs of naval operations.

Perry's spokesman, Kenneth Bacon, said Perry was talking with many current and former top Navy admirals who were in Washington on Tuesday to attend a memorial service for Boorda at the National Cathedral. He also will consult with Navy Secretary John Dalton and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. John Shalikashvili, Bacon said. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

The successor for Adm. Jeremy ``Mike'' Boorda must be confirmed by

the Senate. President Clinton will nominate a candidate, after

having received a recommendation from Defense Secretary William

Perry. by CNB