Is Affirmative Action Reverse Discrimination?

In many areas, states have determined that Affirmative Action is no longer a viable means of balancing the work force. In the past too many employers used it as an excuse to hire less than qualified employees even though this was never part of AA. So through the elimination of AA, many states have changed to where the original concepts of AA were to begin with, the concept that a company should be hiring regardless of gender, race, national origin, the best qualified individual, and changing the requirements to meet the equal opportunity guidelines without giving preference to an individual based on the different aspects but on their skills, talents, and education.