Last Updated on October 6, 2013
In Trampling on the Treaties, Chuck Tanner and Leah Henry-Tanner examine Washington gubernatorial candidate Rob Mckenna via his career as a public official opposed to treaty rights, as well as his working relationship with Anti-Indian activists and organizations. As the Tanners note,
Mckenna’s Anti-Indian policies and ideas, and his willingness to ally his public office with opponents of tribal rights, should raise a large red flag for all people in Washington state who support respectful relations with Indian Nations.
As Washington Attorney General, Mckenna’s legal briefs, they warn, “provide a political framework for backlash against Indian Nations”. His actions as Attorney General, “point to a pattern of disrespect for the basic rights of indigenous nations”. When Mckenna perceives a state interest at issue, “he will oppose the fundamental rights of Indian Nations and ally with anti-Indian activists to achieve his goals”.
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