URL: https://www.indianz.com/News/archives/001525.asp

Friday, September 19, 2003

The chairman of the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma says Bush administration official Ross Swimmer "is the kind of guy who likes to say really scary things just to get a reaction," The Native American Times reports.

In an address to the American Indian Chamber of Commerce of Oklahoma on Thursday, Quapaw chairman John Berrey said he was "a little concerned about some of the directions" Swimmer is taking as head of the Office of Special Trustee (OST). Berrey said Swimmer has proposed to charge Indian beneficiaries up to $500 for probates, a trust responsibility.

"Those kind of things bother me," he said.

Berrey supported Swimmer's nomination as special trustee. According to the article, he doesn't appear to have second thoughts about it, but said: "[Y]ou have to watch [Swimmer] very closely. I�m not sure how much Ross believes in tribal sovereignty in terms of jurisdictional issues outside of economic development. I think Ross sees tribal sovereignty as a hub zone of economic development. As a tribal leader I see it much differently."

Berrey is working with OST and the Bureau of Indian Affairs as part of the "as-is/to-be" trust re-engineering project. He is getting paid through a Department of Interior contract.

Get the Story:
"You have to watch him very closely" Berrey says about Swimmer (The Native American Times 9/18)

Relevant Links:
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Norton - http://www.indiantrust.com
Office of Special Trustee - http://www.ost.doi.gov

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Indian employees challenging DOI reorganization (06/03)
Navajo leaders criticize upheaval at trust fund office (05/09)
Confusion detailed at Interior (10/16)
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