Michael Long

Michael Cole is forced into a match with Long Island Iced Z.

WASHINGTON Mitt Romney scuttled the Massachusetts government's long-standing affirmative action policies with a few strokes of his pen on a sleepy holiday six months after he became governor.No news conference or news release trumpeted Romney's executive order on Bunker Hill Day, June 17, 2003, in the deserted Statehouse. But when civil rights leaders, black lawmakers and other minority groups learned of Romney's move two months later, it sparked a public furor.Romney drew criticism for cutting the enforcement teeth out of the law and rolling back more than two decades of affirmative action advances.Civil rights leaders said his order stripped minorities, women, disabled people and veterans of equal access protections for state government jobs and replaced them with broad guidelines. They complained Romney hadn't consulted them before making the changes, snubbing the very kind of inclusion he professed to support.'It was done under the radar and there was a big backlash,' said Michael Curry, president of the Boston branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. 'It was clear Romney really did not have an appreciation for the affirmative action policies long in place.'Romney responded by creating an advisory panel to recommend changes. But he eventually retreated completely, leaving the state's old policies in place.His handling of affirmative action may offer insights into how he would deal with civil rights issues if he were to defeat Barack Obama, the nation's first black president, in the fall election. The Republican challenger hasn't talked much about affirmative action during the campaign.Romney's campaign did not respond to requests for comment.'This is the canary in the coal mine on how he feels about civil rights issues,' said Julie Patino, who was deputy director of the state's affirmative action office from 1995 to 1999. 'It was a cloaked and unila

See how Starbucks saved a man's life after being laid off from his two-decade long career and then diagnosed with a brain tumor, with CNBC's Michael Gill.

Stephanie (Amber Heard of ZOMBIELAND, PINEAPPLE EXPRESS) and Ellie's (Odette Yustman of CLOVERFIELD) vacation to an exotic village in Argentina is a perfect 'girl's getaway' to bask in the sun, shop, and flirt with the handsome locals. After a long night of bar-hopping, the girls get into an argument, and Stephanie heads out alone in the morning to cool off. But when she returns, Ellie has disappeared. Finding signs of a struggle, Stephanie fears the worst, and turns to the police for help. But the local authorities have their hands full already - with a string of unsolved kidnappings of young female tourists. Skeptical of the sheriff's competency, she enlists help from Michael (Karl Urban of STAR TREK), an American ex-pat staying at their hotel. Together they go on a frantic search for Ellie, but Stephanie soon realizes that trusting his seemingly good intentions may drag her farther from the truth. With danger mounting, and time running out, Stephanie must find her friend before darkness falls.