President Bush shakes up Cabinet for second term (December 13, 2004)

In case you haven't noticed, there's been an exodus in Washington, D.C., of President Bush's first-term Cabinet. Since November, nine of 15 department secretaries have announced their resignations. So who's staying behind? Who's been nominated as replacements? Here's an update...

Appeals court won't hold back Lamberth on trust reform (December 13, 2004)

The federal government has an obligation to fix the broken Indian trust and not just provide an historical accounting, an appeals court ruled on Friday. In a 33-page decision, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals delivered benefits to both sides...

Neal McCaleb passes message to college graduates (December 13, 2004)

Former assistant secretary Neal McCaleb spoke at the fall commencement of the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma on Friday. McCaleb, a former state transportation secretary, said leadership is a "responsibility." He told graduates that trust, love and respect...

Chippewa Cree Tribe holds special election (December 13, 2004)

The Chippewa Cree Tribe of Montana held a special election on Friday for an open seat on the business committee. Former longtime chairman Alvin Windy Boy Sr. won the election with 139 votes. He defeated nine other candidates. The seat...

Biologist seeks to clean up contaminated objects (December 13, 2004)

A biologist from the University of Colorado at Denver is using a $7,000 federal grant in hopes of developing a method to clean up contaminated artifacts. Timberley Roane, a member of the Lumbee Tribe, believes bacterias can be used to...

Bush administration appeals case tied to peyote (December 13, 2004)

The Bush administration is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in a case that is being compared to the Native American Church's use of peyote. Last month, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a religious group in...

Five charged in Kickapoo Tribe theft remain jailed (December 13, 2004)

Five of the six people indicted for stealing more than $900,000 from the Kickapoo Tribe of Texas are in federal custody pending further court appearances. Authorities laid a multi-charge indictment against former chairman Raul Garza, former business manager Isidro Garza...

Navajo Nation to consider aircraft parts plant (December 13, 2004)

The Navajo Nation could be the host of a new aircraft parts plant that will generate hundreds of jobs. Utilicraft Aerospace Industries Inc. of Georgia has been negotiating with tribal leaders about using Navajo land in northwestern New Mexico. The...

Lakota and Austrian youth to take part in exchange (December 13, 2004)

Ten Lakota students from South Dakota will be sent to Austria next summer as part of new cultural exchange program. The Lakota-Austrian Youth Exchange Program was created by a Lakota language teacher and a German language teacher. They say...

South Dakota Indians seek action on voting rights (December 13, 2004)

Lawyers representing four South Dakota Natives want a federal judge to move forward with their voting rights case. In September, U.S. District Judge Karen Schreier ruled that the state violated the voting rights of Native Americans by packing the Pine...

Appeals court allows bias suit against Campbell (December 13, 2004)

An age-bias suit against retiring Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colorado) can proceed, a federal appeals court ruled on Friday. Rita Bastien sued Campbell in 2001 after losing her job in one of his Colorado offices. She said she was fired...

Swimmer admits some Navajo appraisals too low (December 13, 2004)

Special Trustee Ross Swimmer says some Navajo landowners received less than market value for use of their land but denies oil and gas companies are exploiting allottees. Swimmer told SmartMoney.Com that he's "not at all happy with the way business...

Southern Ute Tribe fills one leadership position (December 13, 2004)

The older brother of the late Leonard C. Burch, the longtime chairman of the Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado, has been appointed to the council following a big leadership shakeup. The emergency appointment of Anthony C. Burch was needed because...

Washington tribe wants construction stopped (December 13, 2004)

The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe of Washington has asked the state to stop construction at an historic tribal village where hundreds of ancestors have been discovered. The tribe has been participating in excavation of the Tse-whit-sen village, occupied until the...

Island bison herd donated to Rosebud Sioux Tribe (December 13, 2004)

A herd of bison on Catalina Island in California, is being donated to the Rosebud Sioux Tribe of South Dakota. The 100 animals are descendants of 14 bison taken from the Plains in 1924 to the island for a film...

First Nation seeks more control over resources (December 13, 2004)

The Poplar River First Nation of Manitoba is fighting efforts to develop its traditional territory, a boreal forest eyed by timber, power, oil and gas companies. Although development would bring employment to a reserve where only 15 percent have jobs,...

Eastern tribes to conduct study of tribal college (December 13, 2004)

The United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) will conduct a survey next year on the creation of the first tribal college in the East. The study will take place from January to July to determine where the college might be...

Oglala Sioux Tribe inaugurates Cecilia Fire Thunder (December 13, 2004)

Cecelia Fire Thunder was inaugurated as the first woman president of the Oglala Sioux Tribe of South Dakota on Saturday. At a ceremony attended by prominent Indian women leaders including former Cherokee Nation chief Wilma Mankiller and environmental activist Winona...

Nisqually Chief Leschi cleared 150 years later (December 13, 2004)

A historical court in Washington cleared Nisqually Chief Leschi for the death of a military soldier 150 years ago. The special court said Leschi should not have been convicted and hanged for the incident because it occurred during a period...

Mark Trahant: Bush plan leaves no room for salmon (December 13, 2004)

"What is a salmon stream? A simple question. One answer, I suppose, is that if salmon swim or spawn in that stream, it's a salmon stream. But the question is not easily answered because it's a test about our values....

Lobbyists say Abramoff probe has run its course (December 13, 2004)

"A funny thing happens when you talk to lobbyists, especially those with Indian casino clients, about the Senate investigation of Abramoff and Scanlon. None of them will talk for the record, of course, but they are surprisingly unanimous that all...