Opinion. Politics has gotten pretty nasty this election season.
Lately, there have been numerous stories in the media about videos being manipulated to make President Joe Biden appear confused and distant. These misleading videos are shown on FOX News and on social media.
One video showed Biden supposedly looking for a chair that wasn’t there, honoring those who served and died in Normandy on the 80th anniversary of D-Day during World War II.
After further investigation and put into full context, Biden found his seat and sat down with the others he walked onto the stage with, and they all sat down together. The intention, of course, is to portray Biden as unworthy to be re-elected president in November.
These deceptive practices are dirty politics.
Some of this nasty politics hit Indian Country last month when Montana was the U.S. Senator Steve Daines, a Republican, has blocked proceedings for Biden’s nominee for federal district judge for eastern Montana, Danna Jackson. Jackson is a Kootenai descendant who grew up in Montana on the Flathead Reservation. Biden nominated Jackson as a federal judge in late April 2024.
A spokesperson for Daines said in a statement that the senator has reviewed 15 applications to fill the federal court vacancy in Montana. Daines complained that the White House “never asked for his advice in choosing their nominee.”
The White House fired back almost immediately. White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement that Daines’ team interviewed Jackson more than six months ago, but Daines declined to meet with her.
Jackson, a tribal attorney for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, has been commended by three national Native American organizations: the National Congress of Americans Indians (NCAI), the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) and the National Native American Bar Association (NNABA) . ).
“Danna Jackson has a long record of public service, extensive federal legal experience and is well qualified to be a federal judge,” said NARF Director John Echohawk. “We commend the Biden administration’s choice of this historic candidate and urge her confirmation. She will be a strong addition to the federal judiciary in Montana.”
Not according to Daines, whose block will cost a qualified Native American woman to serve on the federal bench.
Native American judges remain severely underrepresented in our nation’s federal courts. Before the Biden administration, fewer than 10 Native Americans, Alaska Natives or Native Hawaiians overall — out of thousands — had ever served as lifetime judges, according to the Native American Rights Fund. This historical exclusion has long been unacceptable.
It’s worth noting that Biden has nominated more than half of Native Americans to one day serve as federal judges. They have all been women. Biden nominated Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby (Black and Native American) to the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland; Judge Lauren King (Muscogee Creek Nation) of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington; Judge Sunshine Sykes (Navajo) of the United States District Court for the Central District of California, Sara Hill (Cherokee) and Danna Jackson (Kootenai) of the United States District Court for the District of Montana.
Unfortunately, Daines’ bloc derailed Jackson’s nomination.
Daines is very partisan. While serving in the House of Representatives, he voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, which included a tribal provision. During the confirmation of Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) to become secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, Daines was one of the most vocal opponents of her nomination. The senator, who receives campaign contributions from big oil, called Haaland a radical.
Thus, Daines has proven to be an opponent of Native American women nominated for federal positions.
Unfortunately, Daines is a member of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee. You have to wonder why he is there if he can’t support American Indians or their positions on important issues? By name, the committee’s members must be committed to the advancement of American Indians and the progress of Indian country.
It’s shameful that Daines is choosing to play partisan politics by blocking Jackson’s nomination. It matters little that his pride was hurt by the Biden White House’s perceived disapproval. He should have made himself available to be more involved in the selection process, instead of relying on his staff.
MAGA-like nasty politics should not concern themselves with Native Americans. We have been underrepresented for far too long.
Given Daines’ track record with Native American nominees, he does not belong on the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.
About the Author: “Levi \”Calm Before the Storm\” Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded the Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print category\/ online by the Native American Journalists Association. He is a member of the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at levi@nativenewsonline.net.
Contact: levi@nativenewsonline.net
