By Staff
April 15, 2004
Maj. Gen. Harold Cross' nomination to become Mississippi's Adjutant General has sailed through the Mississippi Senate without a dissenting vote. Cross, Gov. Haley Barbour's choice to head the Guard, was confirmed Tuesday.
Critics have questioned Cross' leadership regarding allegations surrounding the 186th Air Refueling Wing, which is based in Meridian, during the time he was commander of the Mississippi Air National Guard. Cross contends he's been maligned and is the victim of "sour grapes."
One allegation against Cross that he was derelict in his duty by assigning Col. Jody Bryant to a position which resulted in an overgrade/excess condition in violation of Mississippi law and, subsequently, Bryant's dismissal from the unit was initially substantiated and later changed to unsubstantiated by the U.S. Air Force Inspector General.
At his confirmation hearing on Monday, Cross denied ever having seen the Inspector General's report on the 186th, but he must have seen something. How else would he even have known an initial finding was made against him?
Be that as it may, nothing in the Cross confirmation hearing dissuades us from the belief that the entire Inspector General's report into allegations of corruption, racial discrimination, favoritism and records falsification at the 186th ARW should be made public. So should an upcoming report from a Florida Air Guard investigator, who was assigned a follow-on investigation.
These reports should be made public so that the facts can speak for themselves.