THE NIXON KNACK

The President's record for choosing collaborators has been less than dazzling. Dean, Agnew, Ruckelshaus, ... you know the list.

Now , a month after proposing an energr program that includes a push for deepwater terminals served by supertankers, whom has he chosen as Chairman of the Council of Environmental Quality? None other than Russell Peterson, former governor of Delaware, who led the successful fight for banning all deepw ater ports and oil refineries from his swate's coastline.

Of course, once America becomes energetically self sufficient, there will be no need for supertankers delivering oil and liquid gas from elsewhere.