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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2002

Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) on Monday challenged Indian Country to question President Bush's new federal budget, identifying several proposals he said threaten the trust responsibility and critical Indian programs.

In an address to tribal leaders gathered in Washington, D.C., the man described by National Congress of American Indians President Tex Hall as "one of Indian Country's staunchest supporters," said the Bush administration has advanced ideas that affect key areas of Indian policy. From trust to the education to health care, Inouye struck at the notion that private entities can handle federal obligations to American Indians and Alaska Natives.

"Guess where your priority will be" when construction of health facilities is taken from the Indian Health Service, he said, identifying one of the proposals.

Pushes to eliminate Indian preference, strip the Bureau of Indian Affairs of education and Indian trust, reduce funding for Indian jail detention centers and slash Indian job training programs from 10 to one threaten self-determination and self-sufficiency, said Inouye. "They call this efficiency," he said.

"This is not guesswork," he said. "This is in the budget now."

In a day filled with discussions on the federal appropriations process and the fiscal year 2003 budget, tribal leaders reacted strongly to the remarks. NCAI executive council member Juana Majel said it was important to define a strategy to address what Inouye laid out.

Inouye, who serves as chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, said he would do what he could to help tribes. But he told tribal leaders to power lies in their hands to make change.

"You will not allow others to shape your destiny for you," he said.

Inouye's views on recent Supreme Court rulings were also welcomed by tribal leaders. He said limitations places on tribal authority were a "dramatic departure" from precedent and Congressional statutes.

"The Court, without legal right or justification, said that your actions may have to take into consideration race or ethnicity," Inouye said. "Is this a relationship of a sovereign to sovereign?"

"This is not the destiny you intend to seek for your children, your grandchildren and the seventh generation," he said.

Tomorrow, Inouye's committee will address several Supreme Court rulings, including Nevada v. Hicks and the Navajo Nation tax case. When he learned of the impact these decisions will have on Indian Country, he said: "I came away convinced that we must act."

Lyle Jack, a council member of the Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe of South Dakota, said his tribe was already moving to defend its treaty rights in the light of the Hicks decision. The Supreme Court last year said state officials can freely enter Indian Country to investigate crimes that occur off-reservation.

"We are prepared to put ourselves in danger to support our sovereignty," he said, drawing applause.

Relevant Links:
Sen. Daniel Inouye - http://inouye.senate.gov
Senate Committee on Indian Affairs - http://indian.senate.gov

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