The Trump White House’s newly-released “Putting America’s First Peoples First: Forgotten No More!” document attempts to re-write its record on Native American issues in numerous misleading ways. The Trump administration claims credit for work primarily achieved by Senate and House Democrats to advance Indian Country priorities and ignores the damage the administration has wrought across Indian Country.
“It’s unfortunate, but hardly surprising, that the Trump White House is now making highly misleading claims that the president is ‘fighting for Indian Country,’ on the eve of an election, when this administration’s record is one of repeated failures for Native communities.” Udall said. “Indian Country knows better. Instead of putting ‘first peoples first,’ the Trump administration fought to exclude Tribes from the CARES Act and has dragged its feet getting critical resources out the door to Tribal communities. The administration is too busy working to revoke Tribal reservations, resisting Tribal access to COVID-19 relief, desecrating sacred lands like Chaco Canyon and Bears Ears at the behest of oil and mining corporations, and destroying Tribal sacred sites to build his ridiculous border wall.”
“The truth is the White House is actively undermining Tribal sovereignty across the country and mishandling a once-in-a-century pandemic that is disproportionately hurting Native communities,” Udall continued. “As vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, representing 23 Tribes in New Mexico, I deeply respect Tribal leaders and Native communities and cannot stand idly by when the Trump administration tries to rewrite President Trump’s abysmal record with misleading propaganda.”
To download and print a copy of the memo, click here.
