Bush Replaces Head of Panel on Civil Rights

By JOHN FILES

Published: December 7, 2004

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 – President Bush sought to reshape the United States Commission on Civil Rights on Monday, announcing a replacement for its chairwoman, Mary Frances Berry, who has been critical of his civil rights policies.

Mr. Bush appointed two new members to the commission and designated one of them, Gerald A. Reynolds, as chairman. Mr. Reynolds, a former assistant secretary in the Department of Education’s Civil Rights Office, will replace Ms. Berry, whose term expired on Sunday, according to the White House.

But, according to a report by The Associated Press, Ms. Berry contends that the leaders of the commission retain their positions until midnight on Jan. 21, 2005.

Mr. Bush also designated a current Republican board member, Abigail Thernstrom, to replace Cruz Reynoso, as vice chairman.

Claire Buchan, a White House spokeswoman, said of Ms. Berry and Mr. Reynoso, “The president appreciates their service; their term expired yesterday.” Ms. Buchan declined to discuss the matter further.

The open seat created by Mr. Reynoso’s departure will be filled by Ashley L. Taylor, a former Virginia deputy attorney general.

The president, who received 11 percent of the black vote in November, up from 8 percent in 2000, has had a strained relationship with the civil rights organization. Last week, Ms. Berry and Mr. Reynoso sent the White House a 166-page report highly critical of Mr. Bush’s record on civil rights. A cover letter told Mr. Bush that his civil rights policies “further divide an already deeply torn nation.”

Ms. Berry, 66, a history professor at the University of Pennsylvania, has sparred with other presidents since she was appointed to the commission by President Jimmy Carter in 1980. President Reagan removed her from the commission, but she was reinstated after a lawsuit . Ms. Berry was also critical of the way Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida handled the disputed presidential election in that state four years ago.

The eight-member panel investigates civil rights complaints and reports its findings. It has no enforcement power.