U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby is bringing Alabama into the national forefront, again.

The Alabama Republican began his term as chairman of the U.S. Senate’s

banking committee on Wednesday, ending his eight-year term as chairman of the

intelligence committee.

And, in his first day on the job, Shelby bravely led the confirmation hearing

for

William H. Donaldson, the man tapped by President George W. Bush to replace

Harvey Pitt at the helm of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

It’s an important position, made even more important by the national

attention on the SEC in the wake of revelation of corporate fraud and by Pitts’ resignation.

Whomever the Senate committee backs must be ready to

withstand both the public scrutiny and the responsibility of restoring

confidence and credibility to the SEC.

Shelby, for his part, seems committed the task at hand. He seems to

understand the importance of his committee's role - an understanding that comes from his 17 years on the committee.

Now, Americans and Alabamians are looking for Shelby to help lead an effort

to restore faith in the nation’s corporate leaders. We seek a sense of

integrity; a confidence that insider trading and corporate scandals will be

diligently sought out and punished; that the nation’s free enterprise system

has checks and balances that keep greed in check.

We applaud Shelby’s willingness to accept this leadership and responsibility

and we look forward to his proactive role in this committee.