"Many people are puzzled when they hear the U.S. president use such phrases as “government-to-government basis with tribal governments,” “tribal sovereignty” or “self-determination” for American Indians. Isn’t the United States “one nation ... indivisible," as the Pledge of Allegiance says?

The answer is more interesting than a simple “yes” or “no.” According to the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Tribal Justice, American Indian tribes are considered "domestic dependent nations" within the United States. As such, they retain sovereign powers over their members and territory except where such powers specifically have been modified by U.S. law. American Indians are more than members of a racial minority group in the United States; they are indigenous people of the Americas with a status akin to dual citizenship.

In his October 30 proclamation marking National American Indian Heritage Month, 2008, President Bush reaffirmed his administration's commitment “to protecting tribal sovereignty and the right to self-determination and to working with tribes on a government-to-government basis.” This national policy of self-determination for Indian tribes began under President Richard Nixon.

The U.S. federal government currently recognizes 561 Indian nations. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) within the U.S. Department of the Interior manages 227,000 square kilometers held in trust by the United States for American Indians. The BIA also is responsible for maintaining tribal schools serving nearly 46,000 American Indian primary, secondary and university students."

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United States Respects Indian Tribes' Right to Self-Determination (America.Gov 10/31)