ENCYCLOPEDIA OF Espionage, Intelligence, and Security Volume ...

Commission on Civil Rights, United StatesElsie Meeks, the first American Indian member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, in her Kyle, South Dakota office in 2001. AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS.❚ JUDSON KNIGHTCommission on Civil Rights,United StatesEstablished under the Civil Rights Act of 1957, the UnitedStates Commission on Civil Rights serves in an investigative,fact-finding role with regard to allegations of discriminationor denial of equal protection under the laws.The commission, as it is known, has no enforcementpowers, but works closely with the federal, state, and localagencies that have powers of enforcement.Unlike a number of federal agencies whose upperechelons consist almost exclusively of appointees chosenby the current administration, the commission is designedto be independent. Four of its eight members are appointedby the president, but the presence of persons whowould likely be friendly to the administration is counterbalancedin large degree by the other half of the commission,whose members are appointed by Congress.It is significant that the commission began life at atime when both houses of Congress were dominated byDemocrats, while Dwight D. Eisenhower, a Republican,Encyclopedia of Espionage, Intelligence, and Securityheld the White House—an ideal situation for a politicallydiverse Commission. Though the years since have seenlong periods in which Democrats controlled both theexecutive and legislative branches (1961–69, 1977–81,1993–95), as well as a brief period in 2001 when Republicansenjoyed the same advantage, differences betweenWhite House, Senate, and House leaders have helped toensure a healthy degree of political diversity on the Commission.Furthermore, its rules hold that no more thanfour members at any one time shall be of the samepolitical party.Political independence. Although the president appoints thechairperson and vice-chairperson, one incident from theadministration of George W. Bush serves to illustrate thecommission’s independence from the Chief Executive.The commission ordered a study of the controversialNovember 2000 balloting in Florida, which resulted in adeadlock between then-Governor Bush and his Democraticopponent, Vice President Albert Gore, Jr. Ultimatelythe United States Supreme Court declared Bush the victor,but only after five weeks of bitter legal wrangling. Thecommission concluded in June 2001, by a vote of 6–2, thatthe voting in Florida had been characterized by “injustice,ineptitude, and inefficiency” that resulted in the loss ofsome voting rights by minority participants in the election.247