THE BOTTOM LINE

Melton Replaced With Barbour's Man

Flamboyant television executive turned crusading state Bureau of Narcotics director Frank Melton's trademark TV sign-off phrase sums the reality of the situation best.

Bureau of Narcotics director Frank Melton was replaced by Gov.-elect
Haley Barbour with an experienced Republican former federal prosecutor. A
Democratic appointee, Melton should have expected no more or less in the
transition.

Melton, like many among some 500 state employees who serve the public at
the "will and pleasure" of the governor, found himself replaced Friday by
former Southern District U.S. Attorney George Phillips.

Phillips is a longtime Republican with strong ties to Mississippi's
Republican elite - including Gov.-elect Haley Barbour.

Let's recap. It's as simple as one, two and three.

First, Melton was an appointee of a Democratic governor. While Melton's
strong record of public and civic involvement is unquestioned, his
appointment as head of the state's drug enforcement agency was
controversial in that Melton had zero law enforcement experience prior to
getting the MBN nod from Gov. Ronnie Musgrove.

Second, Melton's sometimes heavy-handed style at MBN - with flamboyant
shows of force and questionable use of armed tactical units in public
venues already protected by other law enforcement agencies - drew
consistent criticism and undermined his undeniable charisma in dealing with
the law-abiding public.

Third, Phillips' credentials to lead a major law enforcement agency are
impeccable - and impeccably Republican. He led some of Mississippi's most
complex and successful public corruption investigations in the 1980s and is
a no-nonsense professional lawman.

As Melton would say, jabbing his pen into his pocket: "And that, my
friends, is the bottom line."

When Musgrove came to power, he replaced capable, talented state employees
appointed by former Republican Gov. Kirk Fordice with other individuals -
most of whom were card-carrying Democrats. Such is the nature of the
political spoils system.

Can the "will and pleasure" system be abused? Without question. Does it
dictate every gubernatorial appointment? No. Many "will and pleasure"
employees - like Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps and Department of
Environmental Quality Director Charles Chisolm - are surviving the transition.

With "will and pleasure" state employees, replacement is seldom personal -
it's just politics. That appears the case in Melton's being shown the door
by Barbour.