Janet Napolitano, now head of the University of California system, is not happy with the constraints — set out by the voters of California and recently upheld by the Supreme Court — she must face in discriminating among student applicants on the basis of their skin color and what country their ancestors came from. Her Washington Post op-ed over the weekend is illogical and dishonest in predictable ways – mischaracterizing the state’s ban on racial preferences; ignoring the costs of such discrimination and overstating the benefits; etc. — but she grudgingly admits that the “educational benefits” of “diversity” can be achieved without racial discrimination. So her complaining actually amounts to an admission that other schools in other states are required to forgo racial and ethnic discrimination, too — since the Supreme Court’s Fisher decision last summer made clear that they can engage in such discrimination only if there is no alternative way to achieve diversity. So, Janet, even if you’re not happy, we’re happy that you wrote!

Roger Clegg serves on the board of the Center for Equal Opportunity, where he was formerly president and general counsel.