Kempthorne reiterates $7B Indian trust offer

Friday, February 1, 2008  

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne reiterated the Bush administration $7 billion offer to settle the Indian trust when asked about the Cobell case on Thursday.

Half of the money would be used to end the Cobell case and pay for future damages claims arising from the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust. The other half would be used to settle more than 200 tribal trust claims. In both instances, the federal government would extinguish its trust liability to Indian landowners and tribes.

"It's the first time there's been an offer made by the administration," Kempthorne said at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Kempthorne said the Interior Department received Judge James Robertson's 165-page decision in the Cobell case around 5pm on Wednesday. Though he declined to comment in detail about the ruling -- which calls an historical accounting "impossible" -- he managed to quote two passages that painted Interior in a favorable light.

Robertson plans to hold a hearing in 30 days to discuss a remedy for the case. "I don't know where this ultimately goes," Kempthorne said in response, "but it is time for it to be resolved."

Court Decision:
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law (January 30, 2008)

Final Briefs:
Cobell Brief: Conclusions of Law | Cobell Brief: Findings of Fact | DOJ Brief: Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law

Trial Transcripts:
Day 1 AM | Day 1 PM | Day 2 AM | Day 2 PM | Day 3 AM | Day 3 PM | Day 4 AM | Day 4 PM | Day 5 AM | Day 5 PM | Day 6 AM | Day 6 PM | Day 7 AM | Day 7 PM | Day 8 AM | Day 8 PM | Day 9 AM | Day 9 PM | Day 10 AM | Day 10 PM

Trial Order:
Cobell v. Kempthorne (April 20,2007)

Relevant Links:
Indian Trust: Cobell v. Kempthorne - http://www.indiantrust.com
Cobell v. Norton, Department of Justice - http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/cases/cobell/index.htm

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