Elouise Cobell: Still here, Still fighting

FRIDAY, MAY 16, 2003

"To be honest, I am not a big fan of George W. Bush�s foreign policy, but I fully agree with one point the president repeatedly made in the months before the Iraq war.

You remember, the president told us "sometimes you have to fight." Sometimes, Mr. Bush said, the other guy just doesn�t get it; that he needs a punch in the stomach to get the message.

That�s just the way a group of American Indians have been feeling for almost seven years in a federal court in Washington. We�ve been punching away at Uncle Sam, determined to get a full accounting of the monies that the federal government should have been placing in trust accounts for us for more than 116 years. Billions of dollars - money that belongs to some of the nation�s poorest people - have been diverted from our accounts."

Get the Story:
Elouise Cobell: Cobell: �Sometimes you have to fight� (Indian Country Today 5/16)

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

Related Stories:
Editorial: U.S. still can't account for trust (5/12)
OST official says 'sorry' for failed reform (5/9)
Lamberth considers appointment of receiver (5/8)
Editorial: End in sight for trust fund case (5/8)
Accounting of trust land pushed (5/5)
Norton given 'flunking grade' on trust reform (5/4)
Cobell launches next phase of trust case (5/1)
Judge affirms full IIM accounting (4/29)
Court hears Norton's trust fund appeal (4/25)
Activity in Cobell case keeps everyone busy (4/23)
DOI concealed TAAMS problems from court (4/22)
On trust reform, BIA and OST battled till the end (4/22)
Norton gets another day in court (4/21)
Bush administration turns to Congress on trust (04/04)
Judge authorizes release of trust fund report (03/26)
Appropriators question historical accounting plan (03/13)
On accounting, Norton find her magic date (03/12)
Pressure stirs to settle trust fund lawsuit (02/27)
Spending bill keeps provisions affecting Cobell (02/14)
Norton's plan faces court scrutiny (1/27)
Tribes debate response to trust reform plans (01/13)
Trust programs see historic increase (2/4)
Standards guide reform effort (1/8)
What happened to all the land? (1/8)
Cobell trust reform plans filed (1/7)
Norton to fight IIM accounting (1/7)
Norton won't account for assets (1/6)
Lamberth slams claimed accounting (12/23)
Tribes opposing trust fund settlement bill (11/13)
Judge rejects Norton's 'absurd' accounting claim (09/23)
Funding battle underlies trust obligations (7/19)
Interior budget bill generates strong debate (7/17)
Opposition to trust fund bill mounts (7/15)
Norton delivers accounting plan (7/5)
House bill cuts trust fund accounting (6/28)