get our schedules and see past programs at our web sites. you can join in on social media sites. >> in january, the president of the national congress of american indians delivered the annual state of indian nations address. topics included the economic status of american indians and tribal relations with the federal government. congressman tom cole of oklahoma, a member of the nation respond to the speech the we also hear remarks from the senate indian affairs committee chairman and vice chairman. this is 1:20. >> good morning, my name is jacqueline peta, and i would look to welcome you here to our state of indian nation ease vent. ncai is the largest, the oldest, and organization in washington, d.c. representing the tribal governments across the country.

i would look to welcome our distinguished guests to washington, d.c. we have many folks listening to us across the country. to watch the state of 2012 state -- state of indian nations address. across the country we have students, tribal citizens, and leaders, and have gathered in the schools, and sent tircenter watch together. among many events across the country we are pleased mr. star's history class in santa fe, new mexico is joining us. we have university of oklahoma, college of law, center for native american youth in washington, d.c., the tribal office and the indian tribe of wisconsin, leaders of tomorrow, and today's event, that are watching. and there are many other more watching events across the country. we're glad and happy that they're all joining us. we have an incredible turn out

here today. we would look to acknowledge some of the guests in the audience. among those guests, special guests we have board members of ncaai. we have chairman ron allen, president ed thomas, chairman ned norris, president don arnolarnol arnold, and david gibb, and joined by tribal lead ears cross t -- leaders across the country. among our federal partners, of course, we have the esteemed hon honorable, and representative tom cole, assistant secretary, larry ekelhawk, and loretta toole, and yvette rubido from ihs and aaron klein from treasury. we also have our native organizations partners, ernie stephens, chairman, rick west,

from the housing council, finally, native voice one and many tribal and public radio stations across the country for airing today's address and bringing the state of indian nations to hundreds of thousand of people in indian country and beyond. this year we have asked an american indian service member to begin the event. it is my honor to introduce and welcome lieutenant colonel t.j. huntinghorse of the marine corps, a u.s. navy judge advocate at the pentagon. lieutenant colonel huntinghorse has participated in deployments in iraq and afghanistan. please join me in thanking him for his continued service and welcoming him here today. lieutenant colonel huntinghorse.

>> thank you. good morning. and it is my pleasure to introduce the president of the national congress of american indians, president jefferson keel, lieutenant-governor of the nation of oklahoma and was re-elected to the president of ncai. i am here today to represent the american and alaskan native service members and veterans and it is an honor to serve and protect all citizens of the united states including members of america any first nations. today, there are tens of thousands of active duty service members and over 300,000 native veterans who know the great sacrifice to protect our freedom and our sovereignty. one of these great veterans is jefferson keel. president keel himself a retired u.s. army officer with over 20 years of active duty service. he has translated that sense of duty into serving the indian country and building a stronger america. ladies and gentlemen, president of the national congress of

american indians, jefferson keel. [ applause ] . >> thank you. thank you for that warm introduction. i want to thank the native service members and veterans who have joined us today. many know the story of indian country, the challenges we have faced, and the ones we face today. but very few americans know the story of the hundreds of thousand of tribal members who have served in the united states military as far back as the revolutionary war. as a veteran myself, i want to thank colonel huntinghorse and the 24,000 active duty american indian alaskan soldiers serving to day to protect the united states and the tribal nations of north america. thank you. [ applause ]

my fellow tribal leaders, tribal citizens and american citizens, members of the national congress of american indians, members of the administration, members of the 112th congress, and those listening, or watching today, i am honored to speak to you all, but especially to address representatives of the more than 5 million native people and the 566 tribal nations of indian country. [ applause ] the state of indian nations is strong. our nations are strong. our people are strong. like our sovereignty, the strength of our nations is our inheritance. the state of indian nations as i outlo outline defined by what we commit to right now to make the state of indian nations even stronger in the years to come. we all know tribes face a

difficult history. we're rising from harsh economic conditions. tribes have been doing more with less for generations. and i'm here to outline a path to overcome our shared challenges, to lay out specific economic changes and improvements for our tribal nations. some of these changes require legislative action but many others can come from direct action by the administration. ultima ultimately, though, it will be the actions of native people that can change their nations and our communities. native people are the first americans, tribal nations are the first governments of this country. one of the three sovereigns recognized in the united states constitution, and our america is a place where each member of the american family of governments contributes to a prosperous future. to achieve that vision, we need

leaders who understand the indian country matters especially in a presidential election year. we all know the impact an election can have. in years many have come to know the door swings both ways. indian country can have an impact on elections and it can be game changing. as the grandmas on the navajo reservation and the young people of alaskan native villages go to the ballot box this november, they're standing on the shoulders of those who fought hard for that right. as students at arizona state university and veterans in foreign lands cast their vote, they're reminding america that we matter. in the 1940s, thousands of native veterans returned home to a shocking reality, america had accepted them on the battlefield but had no place for them at the ballot box.

ira hayes, a member of the indian community who raised the flag at iwo jima returned to the homeland and was denied the vote. another who enlisted as a marine in the days following pearl harbor returned home to new mexico and was denied the right to vote. these american heroes inspired the fight all the way to the federal courts for the right to participate in the 1948 elections. they expressed the power of the native vote for the first time -- the first time they cast their ballots and it's been at work ever since. stories like these have shown native people that when it comes to native vote we can and we must think big. we will work tirelessly in 2012 to have the highest native vote

turnout ever. we know that it can be done. for instance, on the reservation in montana, turnout rates are regularly over 80%. a survey of seniors shows that native young people participate at rates higher than any other group of students. this is especially important because almost half a million native youth will be eligible to vote for the first time in the next four years. native people didn't see the world and don't see the world in four-year election cycles. we're focused on building stronger communities for generations to come. we want to vote for candidates who stand with tribal nations to create strong, prosperous futures. we're not mobilizing for one party or for one candidate. indians don't just vote "d" for democrat or "r" for republican.

for us, it's "i" for indian. we're independent voters and we'll continue to vote for the candidate who is strong on our issues and cares about our priorities. that's why today i'm calling on all presidential canndidates to make sure indian countries at the table during the campaign and throughout your administration. these specific actions should form the foundation of your native policy platform. first, we call on the president to send a special message to congress on the importance of the nation to nation relationship. in 1970 president nixon sent a historic message to congress on tribal self-determination. that message launched the self-determination era, the very framework that allowed tribes to prove our capacity as governments. all presidents should do the

same. second, we call on the president to fully implement the united nations declaration on the rights of indigenous people. we specifically call for a review of all existing federal law to ensure they are in alignment with the declaration. third, we call for an annual nation-to-nation summit, an on ongoing high-level meeting to institutionalize the current tribal nation summit. a meaningful relationship that must be upheld by all future presidents. we also call on the president to convene regular meetings on specific issues between cabinet secretaries. fourth, elevate native people in the federal government. it's pastime for qualified people to be seated on the bench. the appointment of an adviser on native american affairs has advanced polly making at the

white house and we applaud president obama for his leadership. the importance of the indian budget in the coming decades, we urge the creation of an office for native american perhaps at the office of management and budget. finally, we call upon all candidates to actively engage indian country in your campaign. we invite each candidate to visit, outline your policy positions. we also urge the campaigns to make sure tribal nations are part of the discussion at the presidential debates. between now and the election we have a lot of work to do. for all the partisan challenges of the past year, the congress has found common ground on indian policy. under the bipartisan leadership, the senate committee on indian affairs has reached across party

lines to develop legislation that promises to transform indian country and in the house republicans like don young, democrats like dale kilde have worked hard to educate their constituents and colleagues about the benefits tribal governments offer our nation. there are some important things congress can do right now that can grow i spending a time. the congress can fix the problem it's created by the supreme court decision and offer certainty for transaction that is are critical to the nick future. the department of the interior is already acting to streamline, lease approval for renewable energy development and we urge

congress to expand leasing reform and pass an indian energy self-determination law. congress can also act on public safety legislation that will attract businesses to our communities. we urge the passage of amendments to the stafford act that are supported by fema and would remove burdens have states and tribes in times of critical emergencies when lives are on the line. native women are the protectors of our culture, our family and future. we call on the senate to pass the violence against women act reauthorization, both of which would take critical steps to address the horrific rates of violence being perpetrated against our women. the native class act offers a chance to provide the kind of education our young people need to succeed today and build economies indian country needs

for tomorrow. our young people must not be left behind anymore. congress -- [ applause ] congress must stand with us now to get these bills passed. the long-term success depends on america keeping her promises. that's why ncai, along with our partners in indian country, are making available to you today our plan for the indian budget. this document outlines our vision for investing in the future of our america and stabilizing the indian budget. it will create reliable, safe domestic energy, it will build a 21st education system in america, modernize our infrastructure, and it will fund implementation of critical legislation like the tribal law and order act as the indian health care improvement act.