Re-Finance [03.27.09]

I am happy to announce that after months of negotiations, we have reached an agreement to refinance the debt incurred by the previous Administration to build the Golden Moon!

Certain financial covenants in the original loan agreement made it difficult for our Resort to make adequate payouts to Tribal government and this has been a great burden to our Tribe and severely impeded our pursuit of self-determination. Please see the article on the front page for more on this good news.

The Stimulus Package [03.27.09]

President Obama’s economic stimulus bill was signed into law in February and it is the largest one time spending program in the nation’s history. It contains measures designed to help Americans get through this recession by providing tax rebates, mortgage assistance and other financial incentives to get the economy moving.

It will take months before the $787 billion is distributed but it should add money to workers’ paychecks, extend unemployment benefits for those out of a job and allow many laid-off workers to keep their health insurance.

This action was taken to combat the worst national economy since the 1930’s and it contains roughly $2.8 billion dollars dedicated to projects in Indian Country.

In response to this opportunity we have called all hands on deck here on the Reservation. Barry McMillan and Dr. Kennith York are leading a team of over thirty people in identifying available monies and pursuing them.  Thank you to all involved for your efforts to date.

I recently had a conversation with Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan regarding the stimulus.  While we are grateful for the $2.8 billion available in the bill for Indian Country, I reminded Senator Stabenow that promoting economic development in Indian Country benefits Indians as well as non-Indians in surrounding communities.

I encouraged the Senator, as the Chairman of the Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee, to keep this in mind as Congress considers legislation to try to fix the economy.

I also have the pleasure of announcing that Senator Daniel Inouye, the senior Senator from the State of Hawaii and the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, will be coming to Choctaw in June.

Senator Inouye has been one of the best for Native peoples ever to serve in Congress and we look forward to welcoming him to Mississippi.

This Year’s Choctaw Indian Fair [03.27.09]

This year’s Choctaw Fair is shaping up to be a good one. We have recently secured a commitment from country music great and Philadelphia native, Marty Stuart. He and wife, Connie Smith, will be performing on the final evening of the Fair.

I recently had the pleasure of spending some time with Marty. He told me it was while attending the Choctaw Indian Fair as a young boy that he first laid eyes on his future wife, Connie Smith, who was on stage at the time. Marty told me that when he saw her, he knew she was the woman he would one day marry. It is quite a story and theirs should be quite a performance.

I was also impressed with Marty’s knowledge of Indian Country. He has an entire album, Badlands: Ballads of the Lakota, that details the shameful treatment of the Lakota Sioux at the hands of the U.S. Government and there is mention of our own Chairman Emmett York in Marty’s “Sparkle and Twang” exhibit on display at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.

Emmett York and his brother, Baxter, were members of the first Choctaw Tribal Council. He eventually became its Chairman and was known as a great debater.