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CLINTON/GORE
ON ISSUES OF CONCERN TO NATIVE AMERICANS
Bill Clinton and Al Gore believe that mutual respect for past trusts and
treaties between the federal government and more than 500 tribal governments
is an important prerequisite for improving the lives of Native Americans,
both on and off tribal lands.
Republican administrations have given nothing but lip service over the last
twelve years to an affirmation of the government-to-government relationship
between the federal and tribal governments. A Clinton/Gore Administration
will give tribal governments more say in the distribution of federal funds
geared toward economic growth, universal access to quality, affordable
health care, and improved education.
Guarantee Rights
* Support sovereignty and self-determination of Native American tribal
governments.
* Reaffirm the government-to-government relationship between Indian
tribes and the United States by promoting true consultation and
increased tribal authority in the administration of federal funds.
* Authorize and direct the Department of the Interior to ensure that
prior treaties and trust obligations are respected and fulfilled.
* Protect tribal religious and spiritual freedoms: prohibit the dese-
cration of Native American burial sites and protect access to sacred
sites.
* Reform and strengthen the Bureau of Indian Affairs and build a close
working relationship between the Bureau, the White House and the Office
of Intergovernmental Affairs.
* Support the sovereign rights of Indian tribal governments to resolve
local disputes with states in accordance with federal law.
* Reaffirm citizenship of all Native Americans and improve voting access.
Pursue economic development
* Pursue innovative strategies to develop self-sufficient reservation
economies.
* Create public-private partnerships to give low-income entrepreneurs a
lift in starting Native American businesses, both on and off reser-
vations.
* Implement a New Enterprise Tax Cut and create community development
banks to further assist small businesses.
* Expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to make sure that no one with
a family who works full-time has to raise their children in poverty.
The credit will also be expanded for part-time workers, giving them a
greater incentive to work.
* Repair roads, highways and bridges on and around reservations
through public and private investment.
Expand health Care
* Incorporate goals of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act into
Administration plans to provide affordable, quality health care for
all Americans.
* Provide a core benefits package for all Americans, including
ambulatory physician care, in-patient hospital care, prescription
drugs, basic mental health services, and preventive care benefits --
including measures to combat and prevent Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and
AIDS in Native American communities.
* Keep hospital clinics open longer, particularly in rural areas
that are currently under-served.
* Provide incentives for students and mid-career health profes-
sionals to serve in primary care professions on reservations and
in urban Native American health clinics.
* Center premiums on a community-based rating that does not
discriminate because of pre-existing health conditions.
* Improve long-term care by expanding Medicare and giving older
Americans a choice of home or institutional care, including supporting
tribal nursing homes to give Native American elders choice in kinds of
care.
* Support increased research to study and combat health issues of
particular concern to Native Americans, including AIDS, drug and
alcohol addictions, tuberculosis, and diabetes.
* Intensify health education and provide health care for children
through school-based health clinics.
Encourage education
* Fully fund the Head Start program and support reservation day
care facilities as part of a national child care network.
* Set National Standards through a National Examination System that
will prepare our children to compete in the global economy.
* Support bilingual and bicultural programs that involve parents,
tribal leaders, and other community figures.
* Establish a National Trust Fund out of which every American can
borrow money to go to college, so long as he or she pays it back
either as a small percentage of income over time, or with two years of
community service.
* Train non college-bound students through a National Apprenticeship
program to give these individuals the boost they need to compete in
today's economy.
* Increase adult literacy by working with states to make sure that
every state has a clear, achievable plan to teach everyone with a job
to read, and earn a General Equivalency Diploma.
Protect environment
* Provide technical assistance to tribal governments to implement
sound land, water and mineral use strategies that protect the
environment while encouraging economic growth in Native American
communities.
* Increase energy efficiency in Native American communities and
promote alternative energy sources as part of a national energy
strategy.
Better housing
* Implement policies that favor home ownership for all Native
Americans.
* Increase the Federal Housing Authority mortgage guarantees to 95
percent to assist first-time home buyers and boost the construction
industry.
The Record
* Arkansas recently adopted legislation prohibiting the desecration
of Native American burials and the commercial trade or display of
human remains and sacred objects..
* Governor Clinton named a lifetime voting member of the Indian
Inter-Tribal Association of Arkansas to his liaison in Indian
affairs.
* Senator Gore supports efforts to prevent discrimination in
employment, housing and educational opportunities. He also supports
the endeavors by the Native American Indian Council to ensure justice
for native people.
* Supports efforts to deter the desecration of burial grounds,
including intervening in a dispute between the Alliance for Native
American Indian Rights and the Federal Highway Administration
concerning a bridge reconstruction effort which could have resulted in
major damage to a Native American burial site.
* Supports protection of invaluable artifacts such as those
provided for by the Native American Arts and Crafts provision in the
1987 Federal Trade Commission Authorization.