Candidates speak, debate at Rocky Boy public forum

Members of the Chippewa Cree tribe flocked to the gymnasium in the Chippewa Cree Wellness Center Thursday night to hear candidates for tribal office speak about their platforms and the issues that face Rocky Boy's Indian  Reservation.

The Tribal Chair Debate and Candidate Forum took place five days before the tribe's primary elections as members grapple with several challenges including mounting debt, high unemployment, alleged nepotism and the lack of economic opportunity on the reservation.

The event was organized by tribal members Jim Swan and  Misty Denny.

"I am  so curious to know why our reservation is in the condition it is in," said Jolene Murie Crebs, one of 43 candidates vying for four seats on the Chippewa Cree Business Committee, the tribe's governing body.

She said that she is greatly concerned about the future of the tribe and those who are living in poverty.

In all, 20 of the 43 candidates running for four seats on the Chippewa Cree Business Committee attended. Each was allotted four minutes to address the audience.

The order of speakers was determined by numbers drawn by the candidates.

Later, all six candidates for tribal chair took part in a debate.  

Some peakers such as Cody Rivas, a candidate for Business Committee, expressed frustration with the lack of transparency in the tribal government and what he said was the tribal government squandering money.

"I'm just tired of the way everything is set up," Rivas said.

The second portion of the event consisted of a debate between the six candidates for tribal chair, incumbent Ken St. Marks, former chair Alvin Windy Boy Sr., Business Committee members Harlan Gopher Baker and Beau Mitchell, state Rep. Bruce Meyers, R-Box Elder, and Thomas Roasting Stick Sr.

St. Marks, whose four years have been marked by political tumult including three unsuccessful attempts to impeach him, said the tribe has made progress in the last year. Despite  past tensions between St. Marks and past council members he lauded what he said is the progress of the last year and a half.

"I think we accomplished a lot over there," St. Marks said, adding that the government is now "100 percent accountable" to those it governs.

In his opening statement, St. Marks echoed the concerns of many others who spoke. He said educated tribal members are being overlooked for jobs on the reservation in favor of those who are not members of the tribe.

"We've got a lot of people with really good educations and we seem like we are kind of shooing them off," he said.

Mitchell said that in order for the tribe to confront the challenges they are facing, members of the tribe need to come together.

"Every day it seems like we are going around cleaning up a mess, someone fighting, someone  raising hell with someone else and that needs to stop," Mitchell said.

Meyers, who is also running for the state Senate this year against Democrat Frank Smith of Poplar, said in his opening remarks that the tribe needs a clear separation of powers brought about through reform to the tribal constitution.

Following opening remarks, the candidates for tribal chair drew numbers and were put into pairs with each pair asked a question.

Swan said there were 29 questions composed by himself and others. Both members of the teams answered the question.

The first question, addressed to St. Marks and Mitchell, asked both candidates about how the interpret the idea of separation of powers.

"When you're one judge, I can't tell you what to do," St. Marks said.

St. Marks said that when he was a council member, the tribe went from electing judges to appointing them.

Mitchell said he agreed with much of what St. Marks said on the issue. Mitchell said the courts are often at dependent on the Business Committee because of the budgeting process. The courts are funded through money from the Department of the Interior and that the Business Committee has the power to shut off funding to the tribal court, Mitchell said.

"Through a budget ordinance the chair can go up and shut that off immediately," he said. "So separation of powers, we need to set that up so that they are not reliant upon our ability to turn off their funding," he said.

Meyers and Baker were asked about Rocky Boy's Open Range ordinance and whether the reservation should continue to have one.

Meyers said that at one time it may have made sense to have such an ordinance, but there has now been problems with loose livestock damaging property.

He said that he has seen police chasing livestock and that there has been damage to vehicles and injury to people.

All cattle owners should have to put money toward a bond that would go to cover the cost of the medical care or property damage incurred if a vehicle collides with one of their cattle, Meyers said.

Baker said the issue is one he and others have been struggling to address while on the Business Committee.

He said a lot of the damage caused by loose livestock, is something that an individual owner should be held liable for.

"A lot of that falls back on the owners," he said.