Friday, December 5, 2008

In his Dec. 3 Federal Diary column, "Another Obstacle for Affirmative Action, and Congress Is Prepared to Fight," Joe Davidson urged Congress to overturn a federal court of appeals decision that struck down the Defense Department's use of racial preferences in its contracting ("the Pentagon [would] increase bids from white-owned companies by 10 percent before comparing them to firms owned by people of color").

Such discrimination, besides being divisive and unfair, also wastes the taxpayers' money. Mr. Davidson argued that the preferences "right a long series of wrongs" and would make "government acquisition programs work for everyone," but, in fact, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. got it right when he wrote in a Supreme Court opinion last year: "The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race."

The way to ensure nondiscrimination is by ensuring greater transparency and widespread publication of bidding opportunities, not through institutionalized racial preferences.

ROGER CLEGG

President and General Counsel

Center for Equal Opportunity

Falls Church