Civil Rights
If laws are broken, the federal government investigates, and the individuals involved should be tried and, if found guilty, punished. That is the way the law is supposed to work under our system of government. But not true under this Administration. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights issued reports evaluating the operations of 11 major federal civil-rights enforcement agencies.

Department of Agriculture
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is one of the largest federal agencies with Title VI responsibilities. Its programs affect millions of people, from farmers, to pregnant women, to schoolchildren. It operates one of the most complex and decentralized civil rights structures in the federal government. The department has numerous offices and staff involved in civil rights enforcement, carrying out different responsibilities. Since the Commission’s 1996 report, there is little evidence that the department has not changed or improved what the Commission found to be a complicated civil rights enforcement program, nor has it addressed the Commission’s recommendations significantly. The Commission finds a lack of clarity concerning civil rights authority and accountability, too many short-term civil rights officials, and too many officials involved in enforcement. Congress, through the signing of the 2002 farm bill, created the position of Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil Rights. In March 2003, the Senate confirmed the first Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for Civil Rights, and in April he was officially sworn into office. Among that individual’s many responsibilities will be focusing efforts on improving the coordination of civil rights activities throughout the department.
In 2008 the current Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Margo McKay has not followed through on any recommendations. There is no accountability of her managers that are blatant violators of farmers or employees civil rights. She upholds manager’s decisions no matter how minor.