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Published: Apr 14, 2005

The Invisible Hand of Bush

By Raynard Jackson, AOL BlackVoices columnist

It has been well documented by the mainstream media that Bush has appointed several African Americans to very important positions within his administration. If you were to judge Bush on the merits of his choices, he should be viewed as “the first black president,” not former President Bill Clinton.

Quite often, those with power are rarely seen, but their influence is felt throughout an organization. Here are five of the most influential black people in the Bush administration that you may have never heard of; yet their decisions affect millions of us in our daily lives. Get to know them; they’re the rising stars of the Republican Party.

Claude Allen
Here's a hard-working D.C. brother who worked his way through the University of North Carolina and Duke University's School of Law. His career has spanned both the private and government sectors at the highest levels. He is a very serious person, with a great and disarming personality. This affable personality will be helpful in his new position as President Bush’s new domestic policy advisor. He has the canny ability to disarm even his enemies with his smile and thoughtful rebuttals. Those skills were truly put to the test during the past four years in which he was deputy secretary of Health and Human Services, but, they were not enough to get the liberal Democrats to allow a vote on his nomination to the 4th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeals. Claude is one of the sharpest thinkers in the country and with his resume you will definitely see him on the federal bench or in elective office. Stay tuned!

Allegra McCullough
This sister from Charlottesville, Va., is a true southern belle you don’t want to cross. A lot of people mistake her gentility for weakness, but with a B.A. in Education from the University of Virginia, she will definitely teach you never to make that mistake again. Serving as the first black assistant secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia during the term of former Governor Jim Gilmore, she was able to charm the pants off the good ole boys of Virginia and catch the eye of President Bush, who appointed her regional administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration’s mid-Atlantic region Last year she was elevated to Associate Deputy Administrator for Government Contracting and Business Development at the U.S. Small Business Administration. By virtue of her position, she has some influence on every aspect of government procurement, especially relative to small and minority businesses. She will be a major voice in the business community for years to come. Ah, beauty and brains.

Steve Perry
Imagine a numbers cruncher with personality and you come up with Ohio-native Steve Perry, an administrator for the General Services Administration. Every time you go to a government building, you’re on his property. With a BS, in accounting from the University of Akron in Ohio, and a master's degree in management from Stanford University in California, Perry is responsible for all federal buildings and is the largest landlord in the world. The GSA provides billions of dollars of contracting opportunities for small and minority businesses throughout the country, especially, architects, engineers, construction and IT companies. With this background, you can bet he will be a hot catch for a Fortune 50 company when he leaves the Bush administration.

Sean Moss
This native New Yorker has a BS degree in finance from Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA and a MBA from Indiana University. Sean has extensive experience in growing small, minority firms, so you know he must have the patience of Job. In 2001, President Bush appointed him director of the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. He is responsible for the implementation and execution of the Department of Transportation activities on behalf of small businesses, minority businesses, businesses owned and controlled by disadvantaged persons, and firms. By virtue of his position, he influences billions of dollars of contracts for small and minority businesses throughout the country. He too will be in hot demand when he returns to the private sector.

Ashley Taylor
Taylor, a Virginia native with a B.A. in economics from the Virginia Military Institute and a J.D. from Washington and Lee School of Law, is one of the coolest, most down brothers you will ever meet. He currently is an attorney in private practice in Richmond, Va. Last December, President Bush appointed him a commissioner on the Civil Rights Commission. Now, y’all know I think there is no need for the commission, but if anyone can bring relevance back to it, Taylor can. I predict that his thoughtfulness will make him a future appointee to the federal bench and ultimately to the Supreme Court.



About the Author

Raynard Jackson is president and CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, Inc., a political consulting/government affairs firm in Washington, D.C. RJA provides strategic advice and counsel to elected officials (White House, Congress), corporations and entrepreneurs.

Published: April 14, 2005