US Interior's Gross Incompetence with American Indians' Money
Now they want another Judge!
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For the last nine years, the US
District Court has ordered the
Department of Interior to determine
how much money it owes Native Americans for their
mineral and oil rights on lands the Department of Interior
has held in trust for some hundred years.
So disgusted has been the judge with the US Department of Interior's response and inability that Judge Royce Lamberth said that this department was a "Pathetic outpost" and told them to admit that they cannot come up with accurate figures on how much money of Native Americans they have lost, misplaced, cannot account for.
Some weeks ago, Judge Lamberth ordered them to place notices in the Interior's correspondences saying that the information that department gives on trust assets may not be credible. Of course, the department was angered by that notice of their incompetence, but for years they have disrespected, abused, and used Native Americans' money without any regard for their dignity.
After about 11-years dealing with this incompetent US Government agency, Judge Lamberth has held the Secretary of the Interior in contempt of court a number of times. The Department filed a request to have the Judge removed, saying he is bias. is attempting to move the case from under Judge Lamberth, saying that he is prejudice against them. But Judge Lamberth knows the games, the disrespect, and the deficiencies of this Interior Department in dealing with Native American money.
Gibbs has written about this fierce legal battle that has been going on now for almost 11 years--since 1995. This class action suit is on behalf of 300,000 Native Americans/American Indians, and the Department of Interior seemingly is hoping to wear them out.
This Interior Department is a part of the US government, a government that would be so audacious as to presume it had the intelligence to nation-build in Iraq, and presumes to tell other nations how to live and manage their own affairs; yet this government cannot count a few billion dollars owed to its own citizens.
Rightly angered, Judge Lamberth has ordered that this Department of Interior's incompetence be shown to all the world. This action shows further abuse of our American Indians.
See Gibbs articles on this case written some time ago: Mismanagement of Native American money and From Mismanage to malfeasance in Iraq
Simond
Griote
10.3.05
