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1103442
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Wassaja Story
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1103442
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Wassaja Story
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Bradley H. Patterson Files (Ford Administration)
Bradley Patterson's Native American Programs Files
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Indians of North America
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1976-09-01
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1976
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1976-09-01
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The original documents are located in Box 6, folder "Wassaja Story" of the Bradley H.
Patterson Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Gerald Ford donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
AMERICAN INDIAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY
FOUNDED AND DIRECTED BY AMERICAN INSTAN SCHOLARS
The Chautauqua House,
San Francisco, Ca. 94117
1451 Masonic Avenue
Telephone (415) 626-5235
September 7, 1976
President Gerald Ford
The White House
Washington, D.C.
Dear Mr. President:
This Society is an Honor society, with representation from every
tribe in the United States, active for more than twenty years in
Indian affairs. We publish a newspaper, Wassaja; a quarterly
periodical, The Indian Historian, and a children's magazine, The
Weewish Tree, in addition to many books.
By the very nature of our society, we operate quietly, but have
a great influence upon grass roots Indian opinion.
A front page spread is being prepared in our newspaper for the
October issue, concerning the forthcoming elections, reaching
more than 100,000 readers including Indians and their friends.
We earnestly request you to respond to the enclosed questions, to
reveal your position on issues of critical importance to the
Indian people. Your response should reach us at the latest by
the end of September.
Indian affairs has been a critical issue in every administration,
for two hundred years. It will not go away, and it promises to
become even more critical in the coming four years. This is due
mainly because of the energy situation and the demand for Indian
resources from their reservations. While there are something
more than one million Indians today, our influence is very great,
as can be seen from events during the past five years.
We urge you to respond.
Rupert Yours cordially Costo
Rupert Costo, a Cahuilla man
President
FORD & LIBRARY 078870
MAINTAINS A LIBRARY AND PUBLISHES THE INDIAN HISTORIAN, THE WEEWISH TREE, WASSAJA
INDEX TO LITERATURE ON THE AMERICAN INDIAN
Digitized from Box 6 of the Bradley H. Patterson Files at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library
TO:
President Gerald Ford
RE:
Position on American Indian Affairs
Do you favor the creation of a cabinet-level Department of Indian
Affairs?
You have proposed the consolidation of health care programs. How
2.
would this affect the Indian Health Service?
3.
You have stated your opposition to termination of the federal-Indian
trustee relationship. Does this mean you will support the Retrocession
Bill, which makes it possible for Indians to remove state and local
authority over reservations?
4
You have stressed the need for this nation to achieve energy
independence. This can be accomplished, you state, by eliminating
the strict regulations over coal and energy companies. You have
upheld this position by vetoing two strip-mining bills that would
have required preservation of the environment. The following questions
now arise:
c)
1: What is your administration's position concerning possible
conflicts of interest arising from the need of coal companies
for water and Indian water rights?
b)
2: Do you envision a conflict of interest with the Interior
Secretary promoting increased energy production on one hand
and maintaining his legal responsibility to protect Indian rights?
c)
3: What is your opinion of the Council of Energy Resources Tribes?
5.
You have proposed the establishment of another Hoover Commission to
examine the structure of the federal government. Can you be more
specific about the goals of such a commission? Would zero-based budgeting be
considered by this commission?
6.
What is your position on S.1 (Criminal Justice Codification Revision and
Reform Act), which contains provisions depriving Indians of rights?
7.
In a press conference you said the budget for fiscal year 1977 would
"cut roughly $28 billion out." Where would this money be cut, and more
specifically, would you attempt to save money by curbing government funds for
Indians through program cutbacks, termination, reorganization, such
as is expressed in the Borgstrom memo of OMB?
Jimmy Carter has called for the doubling of the Comprehensive Education
Training Act (CETA). What is your position on the future of CETA
programs?
9.
What program does your administration have to reduce the present 30 to
65 percent unemployment rate on reservations?
10.
What is your position on the future of programs funded through the
Bureau of Indian Affairs? Do you favor turning over programs affecting
Indians to state and local governments, as the Borgstrom memo suggests?
IS
to you envision an increase in government funding for educational
programs for Indians? A decrease?
Republican administrations, beginning with the statement by Richard
Nixon in 1970, have exposed the conflict of interest existing between
the Department of Interior and the Department of Justice, in relation
to the trustee responsibility of the United States to the Indians.
These two governmental agencies act as adversaries in Indian court
cases (such as water rights) in protecting the big landowners, oil
and mining companies, while they are bound by treaties and federal
responsibility to faithfully and relentlessly protect Indian treaties.
How would you resolve this conflict?
Our newspaper, Wassaja, has a circulation of 80,000. We are pre-
paring a front page article concerning the forthcoming elections,
and urge you to send your response before the end of September.
1. So level Department of Indian Affairs
I would keep an open mind about such a proposal. If but nly
i. the vast sajority of the Indian community and the responsible
Imal Indian organizations (like the NTCA and the NCAI and others)
(which of course would mean altering the locati 1. of BIA)
3
with one voice in favor of such an idea, Twould give it
Such an agency
sympathatic consideration. should not b elong in the Executive
Office of the President nor should it be administered by other than
directly
an Adm nistrator or a Secretary reporting, as do all the others, to the
also
President. hat I would want to see from the Indian community
current
is an agreed position about which elements of the Indian service
proposed
offices would be CO bined into the new agency. The Congress of course
will
havethe last word as to the C reation of a new federal agency
2. Effect of Consolidation of XMMXXX Health Care programs on the
Indian Health Service
My consolidation proposal does not affect the Indian Health
except that
Indian
Service,
The funds of the National Institute on
Alcholol XMX Abuse and Alcoholism would in fa be transferred
into the Indian Health Service
3. A Retrocession Bill
Before supporting the specific language of any retrocession
tuke alare
bill, I wish to have further consultation WXZMZ on the difficult
and sensitive jurisdiction issue with the NCAI (which will be
with
discussing this matter at its Salt Lake City Convention), AM NTCA
and with other concerned groups such as governors, county officials
and private citizens. All American citizens, Indians and -Indians
provided with
alike must be Mananteed effective law-enforcement and court systems
and must be guaranteed the rights vouchsafed to them in the United
States Constitution.
hergy destions
(a) Coal companies and Indian Water Rights
Indian trust rights, including water rights, and have
b on vigorously asserted and defended in such cases as Eyranid
Lake and US V Washington. If coal companies need Indian water,
they should negotiate to lease or buy those rights, and Indian
people should make their own decisions about those
negotiations, benefitting financially (if they chose) from any
leases or purchases.
(b) Conflicts of Interest within Interior
I envisage no conflicts which cannot be settled through
administrative, legislative or court action -- and in any of these
actions I shall continue to ensure that the voice of the Federal
Go ernment as trustee for Indian natural resources
rights, will be clearly asserted. I continue to hope that the
Congress will smoots enact the measure creating an Indian Trust
Counsel Authority.
(c) The Council of Energy Resources Tribes
I would wish to ensure that all affected tribes, including
federal
those in the Council, are consulted prior to any actions
which affect their interests.
5. Government restructuring
Insofar as any reorganiati n affecting Indian
affairs is concerned, I would want most of all to have the prior
views of Indian tribes and the national Indian organizations.
I would not favor any zerp-based budgeting applications which
would
imply
a term nationist philosophy.
The term nation
idea is dead and will not be recusitated under any Administration
of mine.
resition on S-1
The original 3-1 provisions of course have beon changed in
response to concerns expressed by tribes.
When
STOR
51
The August, 1975 provisionsz version of S-1 contains some parts
affectin g jurisdiction and, as my answer to the qust retrocession que:
tion, above, indicated, I desire to have further consultations take place
before
deciding on what jurisdiction language to support in the Congre
7. "Curbing Government Funds for Indians"
The record of the Republican administration
for Indian programs is right here for all to see: KNMZBZKZ
to $764 millions
since FY 1969 BIA funds up almost 300% Indian Health budget up
to $425.6 milbons
to $27.7 millions
almost 400% Commerce's EDA up 160% Labor's LEZA C TA funds up (since
1973) up 433% to $75 millions. I am not going to turn downward
towards termination and no officer of my
Executive Branch
has any intention of doing SO either.
8. Future of CETA
I believe the CETA Act is an excellent example of the shift
of decisi onemaking responsibility away from the Washington bureaucracy
and into responsible, elected local bodies, including Indian
Tribal Councils. I will support continuation and improvement of
the CETA program for Indian manpower training.
9. Severe Indian Enameployment
just
Under regulations and guidelines promul ated
by the Department of Commerce for the new Public Works Act,
Indian
705 of the funds are reserved for projects where there is 2 loca 1
unemployment rate in excess of the national rate. Indian
Reservations will clearly qualify for YKX this priority category.
Indian
also
The C TA A program itself is targeted at Reservations of
greatest need and CETA funds are now going to 157 Indian prime
sponsors.
10. BIA Funds to State and Local Governments
I do not favor changin; the route of any
BIA missions and to
funds. Such funds now go almost entirely tortribes and
triba
organizations and that is their proper
destination. No one in my Execut ife Branch is Am suggeting
anything else and the "memo !! to which the question refers
makes no such recommendations. What I support particularly
which 1 signed in January of 1975 and
strongly is the Indian Self-Determination Act/which provides for
(and nonies)
more anD more of BIA and Indian Health functions to be
contracted to tribes directly.
11. Money for Indian Education
The Office of Education's mondies for Indian Education have
risen from $18 millions in FY 1973 to $42 millions today. I
will continue my record of strong support for
the education of Indian children and for giving
themselves
tribes and Indian parents more say in how this education
money is used.
12. Interior and Justice as Zanz as "adversaries in Indian Court
cases
Contrary to the implication in the question, the Departments of
Interior and Justice in the last several years have been in the
forefront XX to defend and protect Indian trust rights in Court.
They have won landmark vistories in such CHZES well-known cases
as McClahahan, Washington, Mancari, Mazurie, Brvan and Stewens
and are arguing forcefully in such pending cases as Pyramid Lake.
second
WIRE Inmy administrati n they will continue to
one of the
assert and defend Indian natural resou ces rights. but
best
ways to resolve any conflicts is for the Congress to enact the
Indian Trust Counsel Authority which we proposed six years ago.
ACTION REQUESTED
September 19, 1976
MEMORANDUM FOR:
BRAD PATTERSON
FROM:
FRED SLIGHT FWS
SUBJECT:
Article Request
The President has been requested to submit his views on
issues concerning American Indians for publication in
the American Indian Historical Society's newspaper,
the Wassaja (attached at Tab A).
As many of the concerns expressed in the Society's
questions were answered in the article attached at Tab B
entitled "President Ford's Policies for American Indian
People," I would like your opinion as to the appropriateness
of sending this article to the Society in lieu of a
personalized article response.
If you concur with sending the attached article, I would
also appreciate your advice as to what other Presidential
statements, speeches or messages might be included for
the Society's use.
As the deadline for the Society's publication is the end
of September, I would appreciate your comments by c.o.b.
Wednesday, September 22.
Thank you for your continuing assistance.
Attachments
ICRD
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
September 21, 1976
MEMORANDUM FOR:
FRED SLIGHT
FROM:
BRADLEY PATTERSON, JR
With respect to your note of yesterday, I believe we should
respond to the Wassaja invitation, but do not think that
the generalized piece we did for the Association of American
Indian Affairs will do the trick here. I think we should
take a crack at answers to the specific questions which
Wassaja has put to us.
So I have done this in a draft which is attached.
Please circulate it (together with the questions) for
clearances and invite any readers to discuss the draft
with me so we can shape it up quickly. Please include
Mrs. Kilberg on your list for clearance on this one.
I am sending it to you in rough draft form, partly to
save time.
FORD
September 217 1976
MEMORANDUM FOR:
FRED SLIGHT
FROM:
BRADLEY PATTERSON, JR.
With respect to your note of yesterday, I believe we should
respond to the Wassaja invitation, but do not think that
the generalized piece we did for the Association of American
Indian Affairs will do the trick here. I think we should
take a crack at answers to the specific questions which
Wassaja has put to us.
So I have done this in a draft which is attached.
Please circulate it (together with the questions) for
clearances and invite any readers to discuss the draft
with me so we can shape it up quickly. Please include
Mrs. Kilberg on your list for clearance on this one.
I am sending it to you in rough draft form, partly to
save time.
FORD LIBRER