Tribal leaders show support for Interior
Leaders of 26 Oklahoma Indian tribes are urging confirmation of Rep. Deb Haaland as Secretary of Interior, saying President- elect Joe Biden's nominee “understands sovereignty and appreciates the trust relationship and our nation's treaty obligations.”
In a letter to Oklahoma Sens. Jim Inhofe and James Lankford, the tribal leaders said Haaland “recognizes the importance of Tribal businesses and know show these businesses can be an economic engine for states, rural regions, and impoverished areas. She boasts public and private sector experience in relevant Tribal and land issues, and a record of working across the aisle to get things done.”
Haaland, 60, a Democratic congresswoman f rom New Mexico, is a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe and, if confirmed by the Senate, would be the first Native American to hold the position of cabinet secretary.
“A voice like mine has never
been a Cabinet secretary or at the head of the Department of Interior,” Haaland said on Twitter last month after her nomination was announced.
“Growing up in my mother's Pueblo household made me fierce. I'll be fierce for all of us, our planet, and all of our protected land.”
The Interior Department over sees national parks and other public lands and resources, and its responsibilities include regulating oil and gas exploration on federal property. The department includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Education and t he Bureau of Trust Fund Administration.
In a statement after Biden announced his intent to nominate Haaland, National Congress of American Indians President Fawn Sharp said “all of Indian Country celebrates an incredible and historic milestone. The centuries of invisibility of American Indian and Alaska Native people are fading as our best and brightest emerge into prominent positions of leadership.”
Biden is set to be inaugurated on Wednesday, and his nominations can then formally be sent to Capitol Hill. Haaland's nomination would be heard first by the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Neither of Oklahoma's senators serves on the panel, but they would vote when the nomination came before the full Senate.
In their letter to the two Republican s e nators, t he Oklahoma tribal leaders said, “As senators for a state with 39 federally recognized Tribal nations and one of the highest Native populations i n the United States, you fully recognize the importance of including Native representation at the highest levels of government. Native voices bring unique perspectives to vital discussions, and more often than not have a deeper understanding of the way f ederal i nitiatives i mpact Tribal citizens and Tribal governments.
“Rep. Haaland is not only a historic pick — she is the right pick for this position.”
The letter was signed by the leaders of: the Absentee-Shawnee Tribe; the Apache Tribe; the Cherokee Nation; the Cheyenne-Arapaho Tribe; the Chickasaw Nation; the Choctaw Nation; the Citizen Pot aw a to mi Nation; the Delaware Nation; the Eastern Shawnee Tribe; the Fort Sill Apache Tribe; the Iowa Tribe; the Kaw Nation; the Kickapoo Tribe; the Kiowa Tribe; the Miami Tribe; the Muscogee (Creek) Nation; the Ottawa Tribe; the Pawnee Nation; the Ponca Tribe of Indians; the Peoria Tribe; the Quapaw Tribe; the Sac and Fox Nation; the Seneca-Cayuga Nation; the Shawnee Tribe; the Wichita and Affiliate Tribes; and the Wyandotte Nation.