Gov. Phil Bryant names new state auditor to replace Stacey Pickering
Clarion Ledger
Gov. Phil Bryant on Friday appointed Shad White as state auditor — a surprise to most state political observers — to replace Stacey Pickering, who is leaving around July 15. Bryant, who announced White's appointment standing in the same spot in the Governor's Mansion as when former Gov. Kirk Fordice appointed Bryant auditor in 1996, said he wanted to appoint someone who wants to serve long-term as state auditor, not someone who wants to use the office as a political stepping stone to higher offices.
White, a former policy director for Bryant when Bryant served as lieutenant governor, appears to fit that bill.
White, 32, of Rankin County, has been serving since late last year as director of the conservative Mississippi Justice Institute, which legally represents citizens and businesses in constitutional rights cases. He is a Harvard Law School grad and former Truman Scholar at the University of Mississippi, where he received a bachelor's degree in economics. He studied as a Rhodes Scholar at the University of Oxford in England and has forensic accounting certification from the University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
Most politicos' short lists of Bryant's likely picks included ambitious legislators and other elected veterans likely interested in moving up in statewide and federal offices. White will finish Pickering's unexpired term through January 2020, and is expected to run for election to a four-year term next year. Pickering is leaving office to become director of the Mississippi State Veterans Affairs Board.
"Shad's credentials and ability are without question," Bryant said. "He has proven himself a champion of limited government that serves the taxpayers. He is the perfect fit for this important office."
White is a native of Sandersville, from a blue-collar family, a release from Bryant's office said. His father was an oilfield worker and music minister who today serves as mayor of the 731-population Sandersville. White's mother was a teacher.
White in 2011 served as lieutenant governor's policy director for Bryant and has since practiced law in the private sector and served as a special prosecutor in Rankin County, where he prosecuted felonies involving the family of an elected official.
At the Mississippi Justice Institute, White has led cases against public officials who violated Mississippi's ethics and open-government laws.
White said he looks forward to being a watchdog for taxpayers.
"I've committed to the governor and will commit to Mississippians that I'll bring every ounce of energy I have and whatever talent God gave me to do this the right way," White said. "I'll always tell you the truth, even if the truth is uncomfortable.
"I'll always treat our pubic officials fairly, and I'll do everything in my power to make sure Mississippi's future is free from corruption."
https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/politics/2018/07/06/gov-phil-bryant-surprise-pick-state-auditor-replace-pickering/762629002/
