Lingle also announced that her director of budget and finance will be Georgina Kawamura, who served as Maui County's budget director from 1987 to 1998. Kawamura served under the administrations of both Lingle and former Maui Mayor Hannibal Tavares.

On the biopsy, Lingle said: "On the eve of Thanksgiving, I have a little bit extra to be thankful for this year.

"But as I said earlier there are women going through this everyday here in Hawaii and I want to encourage women, especially 40 years and older, to make sure that they have regular checks, regular mammograms, that they follow up and make sure that they put their health number one."

Yesterday's biopsy was Lingle's second since July. A routine mammogram in April indicated an abnormality in her right breast. A second mammogram and a biopsy in July at the Maui Memorial Hospital showed "atypical cells" but tested negative for cancer.

Lingle took another mammogram earlier this month, and under Lingle's doctor's recommendations took another biopsy yesterday morning.

Lingle said she would not need any restrictions or treatment, other than continuing to get routine, annual mammograms. No one in her family had breast cancer, she said.

Among the key challenges Kawamura will have to face when she takes office Monday is finding $200 million to replace money from the Hurricane Relief Fund money that the Cayetano Administration has tapped as revenue in the upcoming state operating budget. Lingle reiterated today that she opposes taking money from the fund.

"That's not an option for us," Lingle said.

Kawamura said she will submit the budget put together by the current administration to the Legislature on Dec. 16, and will go back and request revisions during the session.

Lingle also formally named University of Hawai'i law professor Randall Roth as her senior policy advisor. The UH Board of Regents last week approved loaning Roth to work for Lingle while still on the UH payroll.

Roth will be in charge of helping guide Lingle's local and national agenda. "Randy will lead our effort to move our ideas through the state Legislature as well as develop a strategy to get our priorities such as Native Hawaiian recognition and benefits for WWII Filipino veterans adopted at the national level," Lingle said.

Roth has been a supporter and advisor to the Lingle campaign since 1998.

Lingle said another federal issue her administration will be focusing on is homeland security, specifically regarding Hawai'i's ports.

Lingle said Hawai'i's ports are more vulnerable to terrorism than other states and that there would be a major federal push for more port security. She said it was premature to talk about specific dollar amounts.

"Hawai'i has a strategic location, that's why so much of America's military forces are here and for that reason we're also a strategic probably from a terrorist's point of view," she said. "I want to be clear to the public that this is something we're aware of, we're focused on not just the port security but the security for the people of Hawai'i generally. I want them to feel calm about it and relaxed but to be well aware that emergency preparedness will be a major focus for us."

Roth also said Lingle's administration needs to be creative in terms of staffing the governor's office, and said they are looking into an internship program not only for college students but for the "very top people in the community" who can take a brief leave from their current position to spend several months in the governor's office.

Roth said he doesn't anticipate the internship program would create conflicts of interest.