Article 13, in the American Indian Dilemma series, by John A. Fleming, September 24, 2000 IT'S POLITICS - A HOT POTATO The county and then Washington State Republican Convention ( of 2000) resolution calling for the termination of unconstitutional tribal governments, also known as pretend governments, was not the first such resolution to be quashed by a political party state chairman. It also happened in Oregon, during the 1988 Republican State Convention. That conventions platform committee approved the wording and resolution and was preparing to send a proposed resolution to the floor of the convention to be voted on by the delegates when the state party chairman, T.T. Bailey, refused to allow the final typing and presentation to the delegates for the vote . In part that resolution said " Therefore be it resolved, that the Oregon State Republican Party, in convention assembled June 24-26, 1988 in Eugene, Oregon, requests the abolishment of any and all sovereignty actually granted to or exercised by those tribes, bands and individuals of Indian ancestry; " The Oregon resolution called for compliance by the federal government concerning a number of Constitutional requirements relative to their relationship with Indians and their tribes. Perhaps an effort to research the history of party conventions might tell us if this type heavy handed silencing of the normal workings of delegates at conventions is wide spread or not. In any event it tells us that resolutions and even platforms regarding tribal governments and the fact that they are not constitutional and adversely effect the citizenry , will not be supported much less allowed to go forward from within the political party structure and system. Question.. what are we citizens and party members to do ? Amendment I of the U.S. Constitution, gives us one method to try and solve such problems, through a petition to the Government for a redress of Grievance. Below you will find my letter to Senator Murray asking her to present my Petition for Redress of Grievance that was included in the letter, to the Senate. I sent the same letter to Representative Rick Larson, asking him to present my petition to the House of Representatives. The petition below does not include all of the attachments. You will find most of the material I sent as attachments in my past articles and discussions about our resolution mentioned above. 23 July 2001 Senator Patty Murray 111 Russell Senate Office Building Washington D.C. 20510 Dear Senator Murray, As a constituent of yours and in accordance with my right as a citizen, under Amendment I , U.S. Constitution, enclosed is my Petition for Redress of Grievance, presented to you for action. It involves a violation of Article I V, Section 4, of the U.S. Constitution, specifically presenting evidence that I personally, and thousands of other citizens living and or working within Federally established, funded, and maintained Indian Reservations, are being taxed and governmentally regulated by tribal governments that are not Republican in Form. I am aware that the right to petition for redress of grievances is not accompanied with a Constitutional duty for "government" to take action on such grievance found in these petitions. I understand this absence of such a required duty and believe our forefathers were correct in not including such a duty. The reason they were correct is that if a presented grievance applies to a duty that is DISCRETIONARY, members of the Legislative and Executive Branches must be allowed to exercise such discretion. In the Petition I am presenting to you , a grievance that relates directly to a denial of a Constitutional Right all citizens posses, I suggest to you that this is not a DISCRETIONARY matter; rather, it is a MINISTERIAL matter and your oath of office alone is your authority, if not requirement, to take action to relieve this grievance. The enclosed Petition includes four attachments that clearly describe the grievance, what State Officials have said to me and others about this grievance when they were informed of our distress, and lastly, demonstrate public support of this grievance. I urge you to have the Petition read to the Senate and that the Congressional Record of the Senate, document the Petition and its attachments. I also urge you and your colleagues to take appropriate action to relieve me and my fellow citizen of this grievance. Please keep me posted as to your progress in this matter. Sincerely, Enclosure as stated above PETITION FOR REDRESS OF GRIEVANCE In accordance with Amendment I, U.S. Constitution, I hereby Petition the U.S. Government, for Redress of Grievance, that grievance being that I, and thousands of other citizens living and or working on certain Indian Reservations, are being taxed and governmentally regulated by Federally established, funded, and maintained Indian tribes, in violation of Article IV, Section 4, of the U.S. Constitution. These tribal governments are not Republican in Form. I seek immediate relief from this Constitutional violation and an appropriate actual and punitive damage award for myself and my family because of the actual denying of our Constitutional Right to live under a government that is Republican in Form. Attached to this Petition are four attachments that will support this claim and direct the reader to further information sources Respectfully submitted, John A. Fleming 23 July 2001 (Attachments not included ) Back to the basic question for all of us.. what can a citizen do ? If you are effected by these pretend governments.. do as I have done and send letters and petitions to your elected and appointed officials who have caused these unconstitutional end results of Federal Indian Programs. We simply must make ourselves heard, document the problems , and support organizations that are actively trying to bring effective oversight to the Federal Indian Programs that produce unconstitutional end results. Our elected Senator and Congressman are duty bound to protect us and our Constitutional Rights and we must hold their feet close to this fire. If they fail us .. they should not be re-elected. Lets move this fight from party leaders.. and put it where it belongs: elected and appointed officials at all levels of government.