
The White House announced today that President Obama will hold a Tribal Nations Conference on November 5, with the 564 federally recognized Native American tribes.
"I look forward to hearing directly from the leaders in Indian Country about what my Administration can do to not only meet their needs, but help improve their lives and the lives of their peoples," Obama said in a statement. "This conference will serve as part of the ongoing and important consultation process that I value, and further strengthen the Nation-to-Nation relationship."
The White House said each of the 564 tribes will be invited to send one representative to the November conference, to meet with the President and administration members. Obama first mentioned the conference in June, in an address to the 2009 National Congress of American Indians Mid-Year Conference.
chigger
October 12, 2009 5:05 PM
How about starting here?
http://www.dickshovel.com/henry.html
It has been reported that:
Information fed into the BIA's computer system is disorganized and erroneous.
An estimated $5.8 billion has not been collected (since 1979) from companies that pump oil and gas from reservation lands, thus robbing Indians.
In some cases, money that belonged to individual Indians and tribes was deposited in slush funds through accounts set up under phony names.
There are thirty recent incidents in which federal employees were allegedly involved in theft, embezzlement and fraud on Indian reservations, yet few were prosecuted.
BIA sponsored Indian programs failed to improve the economies of reservations, and the BIA failed to provide quality education for Indian children.
Housing programs are riddled with scandal, and housing in many areas is shockingly substandard.
Indian health remains poor, with diabetes reaching epidemic proportions on some reservations.
The BIA cannot manage its own money, or account for millions in equipment and supplies."
Stealing From Indians - Inside the Bureau of
Indian Affairs, an Expose of Corruption,
Massive Fraud and Justice Denied...
by David L. Henry
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chigger
October 12, 2009 5:20 PM
http://www.nativeweb.org/pages/legal/GAO_BIA_full.html
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October 13, 2009 7:40 AM
Given the recent trend of partisan politics inside the beltway, I'd wager a few hours before the GOP starts saying that Indians don't matter and Obama should be spending his time on more important things like health care.
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