Today, Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, chaired an oversight hearing on the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. The hearing explored the Obama administration’s plans for the Civil Rights Division in the wake of eight years during which time the Division was compromised by politicization and mismanagement. The hearing also examined the findings of two Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports on the enforcement priorities, data collection and case management information system of the Civil Rights Division. The reports (attached) were undertaken at the request of Judiciary Chair John Conyers, Constitution Subcommittee Chair Jerrold Nadler, and Rep. Melvin Watt after concerns were raised by previous hearings and reports of severe problems within the Division.

“Over the past eight years, the Civil Rights Division has been deeply troubled by political manipulation and incompetent management, a fact which should alarm all those who are concerned about the enforcement of civil rights in this nation,” said Nadler. “With the authority to enforce our civil rights laws, the Division is the guardian of our fundamental values: freedom of religion, the right to be treated fairly, the right to cast a vote in a free and fair election, the right to a job, the right to a home, the right to an education, and, with the enactment of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, the right to live your life free from the threat of violent hate crimes.”

Witnesses at the hearing included: Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice; Eileen R. Larence, Director, Homeland Security and Justice Issues, United States Government Accountability Office; Grace Chung Becker, former Acting Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice; and, Joseph Rich, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights.

The following is the text of Nadler’s opening statement, as prepared:

“Today, the Subcommittee continues its oversight of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. With the authority to enforce this nation’s civil rights laws, the Division is the guardian of our fundamental values: freedom of religion, the right to be treated fairly, the right to cast a vote in a free and fair election, the right to a job, the right to a home, the right to an education, and, with the enactment of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act, the right to live your life free from the threat of violent hate crimes.

“As our Subcommittee has documented, the Division has been deeply troubled over the past eight years. Career civil rights attorneys were routinely overruled by political appointees, hiring was illegally politicized, enforcement was, in some key areas, grossly neglected, and morale was as bad as at any time since the Division’s establishment. The loss of dedicated career staff was alarming.

“We now have a new Assistant Attorney General, Tom Perez. He is a career civil rights lawyer, and he has a tremendous job ahead of him. In addition to the historically challenging work of the Civil Rights Division, he must rebuild a decimated and demoralized office, and he must do so with such monumental tasks as the decennial redistricting on the horizon. We would have liked to have had him here sooner, but some of our colleagues in the Other Body, apparently didn’t have the same sense of urgency in getting him on the job.

“I hope to hear from Mr. Perez how he plans to meet these challenges.

“We will also hear from the Government Accountability Office, which has produced two extensive reports on the Civil Rights Division at the request of Chairman Conyers, Mr. Watt, and myself. I think the analysis and recommendations will help move the Division forward as it meets the challenges of the next few years.

“I want to welcome all our witnesses, and I look forward to their testimony.”