Former U.S. Rep. Bob Barr has been appointed to Georgia's judicial watchdog agency by Gov. Brian Kemp.

Kemp named Barr to the Judicial Qualifications Commission on July 1.  Barr replaces Athens attorney Edward Tolley, who was appointed by former Gov. Nathan Deal, on the JQC's seven-member investigative panel. He will serve a two-year term ending June 30, 2021.

Kemp said he was “truly honored” that Barr accepted the appointment. “He has the right background, expertise, and temperament for this important role,” he said.

Kemp said he was confident that Barr “will serve Georgians well” on the JQC.

Kemp earlier signaled that he was considering naming Barr to the 10-member JQC, which reviews allegations of judicial misconduct and brings ethics charges when warranted, when he asked the State Bar of Georgia last month to vet the former congressman for the post.

State law governing JQC appointments gives the governor authority to appoint one lawyer to the commission's investigative panel. The governor also appoints a citizen member to the JQC's three-person judicial panel. Under JQC rules and its governing legislation, the bar may recommend a list of individuals for consideration to serve as attorney members of the JQC to the governor, the lieutenant governor and the House speaker. None of the appointing authorities are required by law to make appointments from the bar's recommended list.

Barr couldn't be reached for comment.

From 1971-1978, Barr worked for the CIA as an analyst on the agency's Latin American desk, while earning a law degree from Georgetown University.

Barr served as U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia from 1986-1990 as an appointee of former President Ronald Reagan. He represented Georgia's 7th Congressional District from 1995-2003, and, while in Congress, introduced the first resolution calling for a formal impeachment inquiry of President Bill Clinton. Barr later served as manager of the House impeachment proceedings. He also introduced the federal Defense of Marriage Act that banned the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriage.

Barr was the Libertarian Party's 2008 presidential nominee.

Barr is currently chairman of Liberty Guard Inc., a nonprofit organization that the organization website says stands for “freedom from federal overreach,” “oppressive government,” and “an overly complicated tax code that hampers economic growth.”  The organization's tenets include beliefs “that less government is the best government,” that “government is the negation of liberty,” and that “individuals, and individuals alone, are the best decision-makers for their own lives.”

He is the head of Atlanta consulting firm Liberty Strategies LLC; president of The Law Enforcement Education Foundation, which provides information, training and equipment to law enforcement agencies and officers; and a member of the board of directors of the National Rifle Association.

Barr also is the author of three books: “The Meaning of Is: The Squandered Impeachment and Wasted Legacy of William Jefferson Clinton,” “Patriot Nation: Bob Barr's Laws of the Universe, Volume One,” and “Lessons in Liberty.”