U.S. Department of Justice

PHOTO COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

Staff Report

WASHINGTON – According to a New York Times report published earlier this week, The Trump administration is hiring attorneys to take on roles within the Justice Department aimed at investigating and bringing litigation against colleges and universities over affirmative action admissions policies.

The Times said it obtained an internal announcement to the department’s civil rights division recruiting lawyers to target institutions that practice “intentional racebased discrimination.”

Though the document does not specifically name white students as the group being discriminated against, since affirmative action gives preference to traditionally disadvantaged minority groups like blacks and Hispanics, The Times said the announcement is referring to white students.

The report adds new fuel to a long-time debate, which most recently played out on a national stage in 2016 when the Supreme Court voted 4-3 in favor of the University of Texas at Austin, which had been sued by Abigail Fisher who alleged she was denied admission to the university because she was white.

The Times’ report said the Justice Department would redirect resources to investigate complaints, but the department itself declined to comment on the matter.

According to CNN, however, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said The Times’ article is “based on uncorroborated sources,” adding “The Department of Justice will always review credible allegations of discrimination on the basis of any race.”