Mary Frances Berry: Uncivil Rights

Washington Times

No. I am NOT any type of fan of Mary Frances Berry. She's a racist huckster of long repute, IME. However

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Both Ms. Berry and Mr. Reynoso were tapped in 1998 to fill uncompleted terms that were to end Dec. 5, 2004. President Clinton delayed appointing Ms. Berry until Jan. 26, 1999, though.

White House records show that Ms. Berry's term was up yesterday, conflicting with a Nov. 9 memo sent to commissioners asserting that "the next commissioner terms that will be ending are those of Chairperson Berry and Vice Chairperson Reynoso. According to long-standing commission records, those terms end on midnight, January 21, 2005."

The memo was sent by staff director Les Jin, a Berry ally and a Clinton appointee himself.

"The problem is that we don't know whether Mary Frances Berry will be willing to go quietly," said Jennifer Braceras, a Republican member of the commission. "I'm worried what kind of mischief she will be committing between now and the time she leaves." .
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President Bush already has two candidates for their replacement: " Ashley Taylor, a former Virginia deputy attorney general, and Gerald Reynolds, the former assistant secretary in the Department of Education's civil rights office. "

It is time to change office acess card codes. That would not be uncivil. M. Berry KNOWS the law -- her term is up exactly December 5th. This matter was decisively decided in federal court in 2002:

" A similar disagreement over term dates was settled in a federal court in 2002, when Peter Kirsanow was appointed to replace commissioner Victoria Wilson, who was also placed on the commission to fill a partially completed term. The court ruled that Ms. Wilson's tenure was limited to the term she was appointed to fulfill. "

Additionally: House investigates panel on civil rights

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" The subpoena seeks "all documents referring to all contracts, specifically dealings with [public relations firms] McKinney and Associates and McKinney and McDowell; all documents regarding any fees paid to anyone," said a source familiar with the investigation. "
...
Earlier this year, the commission refused to cooperate in a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation. The subcommittee's inquiry was triggered by unsatisfactory reviews by the GAO, which sought to find out how the commission spent its money. :
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