Senator Harry Reid comments on Standing Rock. MR. REID: THIS MONTH IS NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH. DURING THIS MONTH, WE HONOR THE CONTRIBUTION OF AMERICAN INDIANS. ALSO, OF COURSE, ALASKA NATIVES AND HAWAIIANS. BUT WE DON'T HAVE TO LOOK VERY FAR, MADAM PRESIDENT, TO SEE HOW NATIVE AMERICANS CONTINUE FIGHTING FOR THEIR HERITAGE, AND THEY REALLY MUST FIGHT FOR THEIR HERITAGE. PICK UP A NEWSPAPER, TURN THE NEWS ON ANY CHANNEL YOU WANT, AND YOU'LL SEE WHAT'S HAPPENING AT THE STANDING ROCK RESERVATION IN NORTH DAKOTA. THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX TRIBE IS OPPOSED TO THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PORTION OF THE NORTH DAKOTA ACCESS PIPELINE THAT PASSES NEAR THEIR RESERVATION WHERE IT CROSSES THE MISSOURI RIVER. THEY'RE CONCERNED THAT THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PIPELINE COULD NOT ONLY DESTROY ANCESTRAL BURIAL GROUNDS BUT ALSO CONTAMINATE THE WATER SUPPLY FOR THE TRIBE AS WELL AS MILLIONS OF OTHERS WHO DEPEND ON WATER FROM THE MISSOURI RIVER. STANDING ROCK SIOUX ARE FIGHTING FOR THEIR LAND, THE RIGHT TO CLEAN WATER, CLEAN AIR AND THEIR HISTORY. THEY'RE NOT ALONE. THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX HAVE BEEN JOINED BY THOUSANDS OF OTHERS, INCLUDING MEMBERS OF HUNDREDS OF TRIBES THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES. LAST MONTH WHILE I WAS IN NEVADA, MEMBERS OF THE 27 NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES WE HAVE IN NEVADA MADE IT CLEAR TO ME THEY STAND IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX, BUT I DO, TOO, MADAM PRESIDENT, AND HERE'S WHY. HERE'S WHY I JOINED WITH THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX IN CALLING FOR AN ALTERNATIVE ROUTE FOR THE PIPELINE'S CONSTRUCTION. IT'S PAST TIME THIS SITUATION COULD BE RESOLVED PEACEFULLY. IT WAS ONLY HERE FOR MONTHS AND THE DEBATE HAS DESCENDED INTO VIOLENCE. PRIVATE SECURITY GUARDS HAVE UNLEASHED ATTACK DOGS ON INDIANS, RESULTING IN MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN BEING BITTEN AND SOME VERY SEVERELY. POLICE HAVE USED RUBBER BULLETS, TEAR GAS, GRENADES, COMPRESSION GRENADES. 300 PEOPLE HAVE BEEN TREATED FOR INJURIES AS A RESULT OF THIS VIOLENCE AGAINST THE PROTESTERS. THE MOST SEVERE INJURY TOOK PLACE A WEEK AGO WHEN ONE YOUNG WOMAN HAD PARTS OF HER ARM AND HAND BLOWN OFF. THE VIOLENCE AT STANDING ROCK MUST END. I'M CONFIDENT THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA'S ADMINISTRATION ARE TAKING THE NECESSARY STEPS TO ADDRESS THE SITUATION. THEY'VE DONE WELL SO FAR. WHAT IS HAPPENING AT STANDING ROCK IS A MOVEMENT THAT HAS CAPTURED THE ATTENTION OF THE ENTIRE COUNTRY, BUT WE SHOULD UNDERSTAND THE CONTEXT OF WHAT IS TAKING PLACE. WE SHOULD BE MINDFUL THAT THE HISTORY OF THIS REGION IS FRAUGHT WITH DISPUTES, AND VERY FEW OF WHICH, IF ANY, HAVE BEEN RESOLVED IN FAVOR OF THE INDIANS. THIS REGION IS FRAUGHT, I REPEAT, WITH DISPUTES BETWEEN NATIVE AMERICANS AND THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT, DISPUTES THAT ORIGINATED MORE THAN A CENTURY AGO BUT IN THE MINDS OF THE INDIANS, THEY'RE STILL VERY MUCH ALIVE. LAST WEEK, KEVIN GOVER, DIRECTOR OF THE AMERICAN ?OAM'S NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN, WHICH IS A WONDERFUL PLACE, PUT THE CLASH AT STANDING ROCK INTO HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE, AND HERE'S WHAT HE SAID, AND I QUOTE -- "TAKE STANDING ROCK. IF YOU SNOW WHAT THE HISTORY OF THE SIOUX NATION IS, YOU KNOW THAT THE TREATIES WERE MADE WITH THE SIOUX NATION CONCERNING THESE LANDS THAT NO LONGER BELONG TO THE SIOUX NATION, AND YOU KNOW THAT THE INVESTMENT OF THE MISSOURI RIVER FOR THE PAST CENTURY HAS ALWAYS, ALWAYS INVOLVED TAKING OF INDIAN LAND. THEY WERE BUILDING DAMS UP AND DOWN THE MISSOURI RIVER. AND EVERY INDIAN RESERVATION ALONG THE WAY WAS FLOODED. SOME OF THE BEST LAND WAS FLOODED, WHICH ONLY DEEPENED THEIR POVERTY AND MADE IT THAT MUCH HARDER TO CLIMB OUT OF POVERTY, WHICH THEY HAVEN'T. WE SHOULD KNOW THAT KIND OF HISTORY, SAYS KEVIN GOVER," AND I AGREE. THIS IS THE HISTORY TO WHICH HE IS REFERRING, OR AT LEAST PART OF IT. IN THE 1980'S, CONGRESS PUSHED THE SIOUX TO RESERVATIONS. I'M SORRY. IN THE 1890'S, MADAM PRESIDENT, CONGRESS PUSHED THE SIOUX TO RESERVATIONS. TOOK THEM OFF THEIR ANCESTRAL LAND, JAMMED THEM INTO RESERVATIONS. SPEAKING FROM KNOWLEDGE I HAVE WHAT THEY DID TO THE SHOSHOME IN NEVADA, IT WAS UNBELIEVABLE, PUT THEM IN THE WORST PLACES YOU COULD FIND. AND THAT'S WHAT THEY DID TO THE SIOUX. IN THE 1890'S, THEY PUSHED THE SIOUX INTO RESERVATIONS. THEN, TWO DECADES LATER, IN VIOLATION OF ALL THE TREATIES THEY HAD, THEY BUILT DAMS IN THE MISSOURI RIVER THAT SHRUNK THE SIZE OF THE RESERVATIONS EVEN MORE. AND THEN IN THE 1940'S, THE UNITED STATES BUILT YET ANOTHER DAM, PUTTING THE SIOUX MOST FERTILE LAND UNDER WATER. I DON'T INTEND TO HAVE ALL THE ANSWERS, MADAM PRESIDENT, BUT I DO KNOW FROM EXPERIENCE THAT PROGRESS IS POSSIBLE WHEN COOPERATION AND RESPECT FORM THE FOUNDATION OF FAIRNESS. ESPECIALLY ON THE ISSUES RELATED TO TRIBAL RIGHTS AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS. I TAKE ONE EXAMPLE THAT I KNOW A LOT ABOUT, AND THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED IN NEVADA WITH A VERY LARGE POWER PLANT. COAL FIRE CALLED THE REID-GARDNER COAL-FIRED PLANT. REID-GARDNER. IT WAS ONE OF THE DIRTIEST POWER PLANTS IN THE ENTIRE COUNTRY. THIS COAL PLANT WAS LOCATED LESS THAN A FOOTBALL FIELD FROM THE TRIBAL RESERVATION. EVERY DAY, IT DUMPED THOUSANDS OF TONS OF TOXINS IN THE AIR, SUCH AS ARSENIC, MERCURY AND LEAD. TRIBAL MEMBERS GOT SICK. OF COURSE THEY DID. 300 PEOPLE IN THE ORGANIZATION WERE POISONED DAILY BY THE POLLUTION. WORKING WITH THE PAYUTES, I CALLED FOR CLOSURE OF THE PLANT. PEOPLE THOUGHT WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO, MADAM PRESIDENT. IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY A FAIR AND JUST THING TO DO FOR THE MOAPA BAND OF PAYUTES. SINCE THAT TIME WHEN WE STARTED THIS INITIAL EFFORT, THREE OF REID-GARDNER'S FOUR GENERATING UNITS HAVE BEEN SHUT DOWN, CLOSED, AND THE WHOLE COAL FACILITY WILL BE OUT OF BUSINESS WITHIN THE NEXT 90 DAYS. THAT'S PRETTY GOOD. IT'S GONE. WHY? BECAUSE YOU HAD GOVERNMENT, GOVERNMENT, LOCAL, STATE GOVERNMENT, INDIAN GOVERNMENT AND THE POWER COMPANY ALL WORK TOGETHER TO ADDRESS THIS ISSUE. IT COULDN'T HAVE BEEN DONE WITHOUT ALL THREE OF THEM WORKING TOGETHER. I HAVE SAID THIS PUBLICLY. I HAVE HAD A LOT OF DISPUTES WITH A MONOPOLY POWER COMPANY IN NEVADA, BUT ON THIS ISSUE, MADAM PRESIDENT, I HAVE COMPLIMENTED THEM BECAUSE THEY DID THE RIGHT THING. AND WITH THE PAYUTE TRIBE, INSTEAD OF HAVING THIS TOXIC DUMP IN THE FORM OF A COAL-FIRED GENERATING PLANT RIGHT NEXT TO THEM AND THEY BREATHE EVERY DAY, THEY NOW HAVE A HUGE SOLAR FARM. IT'S CREATED LOTS OF CONSTRUCTION JOBS. THAT ELECTRICITY IS NOW BEING SENT TO THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES. IT'S BEEN GOOD FOR EVERYBODY. GOOD FOR THE AIR OF NEVADA, GOOD FOR THE INDIANS WITH THE WORK. IT'S HELPED THE ENVIRONMENT. AND THE POWER COMPANY HAS MADE OTHER ARRANGEMENTS FOR THAT POWER, AND THEY DID IT FAIRLY EASILY. THE SIMPLE TRUTH IS BASED ON THIS LITTLE EXPERIENCE I HAD, YOU NEED TO WORK TOGETHER, WHETHER IT'S THE MOAPA, PAYUTE OR STANDING ROCK SIOUX. THEY ARE EXPOSED TO MORE POLLUTION THAN MOST AMERICANS. THAT'S THE WAY IT IS. WE DON'T TALK A LOT ABOUT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE SEVERELY IMPACTED BY THE CENTURY OF PRACTICALLY LIMITLESS POLLUTION, INDIANS. THIS IS NOT AN URBAN OR RURAL PHENOMENON. IT'S EVERYWHERE, AND IT'S DANGEROUS. RESEARCHERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA FOUND THE DIFFERENCE IN EXPOSURE TO NITROGEN DIOXIDE ALONE IS EQUAL TO ROUGHLY 7,000 DEATHS A YEAR FROM HEART DISEASE. FROM SOUTH DAKOTA TO NEVADA, NATIVE AMERICANS ARE ON THE FRONT LINES OF THESE ENVIRONMENTAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH CATASTROPHES. TO MAKE MATTERS WORSE, HEAVY POLLUTING INDUSTRIES ARE FIGHTING TO RETURN TO THE DAYS OF LIMITED POLLUTION UNDER THE NEXT ADMINISTRATION. CAN THE PEOPLE OF AMERICA EXPECT OUR NULL ELECTED PRESIDENT TO INTERVENE ON THEIR BEHALF BEGINS THE BIG POLLUTERS? CAN THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX TRIBE DEPEND ON THE MAN WHO IS FINANCIALLY INVESTED IN THE DAKOTA ACCESS PIPELINE? PROBABLY NOT. THIS IS ABOUT MORE THAN PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP OR FOSSIL FUEL PROFITS. WHAT'S HAPPENING AT STANDING ROCK IS ABOUT RESPECT FOR PEOPLE, WHERE THEY BUILD THEIR HOMES, WHERE THEY RAISE THEIR FAMILIES. THE VIOLENCE AND AGGRESSION AGAINST STANDING ROCK SIOUX IN NORTH DAKOTA IS A TRAGIC EXAMPLE OF THE FAILURE TO RESPECT PEOPLE WITH LONG-STANDING GRIEVANCES FOR HOW THEY AND THEIR NATURAL RESOURCES HAVE BEEN TREATED. NO ONE CAN SEE THIS MORE THAN THE INDIANS. THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX PROTESTED THE DAKOTA ACCESS PIPELINE HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH THE HISTORY OF BROKEN PROMISES AND INSTITUTIONALIZED DISREGARD FOR THE RIGHTS OF THEIR OWN LAND AS WELL AS THE TRUSTEESHIP BETWEEN THE INDIAN TRIBE AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES. WHILE MOST STAKEHOLDERS WANT A SPEEDY END TO THIS SITUATION, THEY MUST UNDERSTAND THAT OVERREACTION TO PROTESTERS, VIOLENCE AND DISREGARD FOR OUR HISTORY UNDERMINES THE LIKELIHOOD OF A MUTUALLY ACCEPTABLE SOLUTION. THEY RUB SALT IN THE ALREADY INFECTED WOUNDS. PROFIT SHOULD BE NOT THE DETERMINING FACTOR OF HOW THIS MATTER IS RESOLVED. THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION HAS RECOGNIZED THAT THIS HISTORY MEANS THE DAKOTA ACCESS PIPELINE IS MUCH MORE COMPLICATEED THAN A WATER CROSSING PERMIT SIMPLY. THEY ARE DOING THE RIGHT THING BY WORKING WITH TRIBES TO DEVELOP A BETTER CONSULTATION PROCESS. I APPRECIATE VERY MUCH WHAT THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION HAS DONE. THEY RECOGNIZE THAT HISTORY MEANS THAT THE PIPELINE IS MORE COMPLICATED THAN SIMPLY WATER CROSSING. I APPRECIATE THE PRESIDENT SHOWING THE STANDING ROCK SIOUX THE RESPECT TO WHICH THEY ARE ENTITLED. PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS LESS THAN TWO MONTHS LEFT IN HIS TERM, AND IT'S BECOMING CLEAR THE DISPUTE AT STANDING ROCK LIKELY WON'T BE RESOLVED BEFORE HE LEAVES OFFICE. I ENCOURAGE THE NEW ADMINISTRATION AND THE ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS TO CONTINUE FINDING ALTERNATE ROUTES. THERE IS ONE OUT THERE. IT SHOULD NOT BE THAT HARD. THERE IS NO REASON THAT THIS SITUATION CANNOT BE REMEDIED IN A MANNER THAT'S FAIR TO ALL. 300 PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY BEEN INJURED. GRENADES, DOGS BEING SICCED ON THESE INDIANS. FREEZING WATER IS BEING SPRAYED ON THEM IN FREEZING TEMPERATURES, BELOW FREEZING TEMPERATURES. OUR NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES ARE LOOKING TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR HELP. FOR ONCE LET'S GET THEM SOME HELP RATHER THAN CONTINUING TAKING FROM THEM. THEY WANT TO BELIEVE THAT AFTER CENTURIES AFTER WRONG, THE UNITED STATES WILL FINALLY GET IT RIGHT. INDIANS WANT TO BELIEVE THAT AFTER, AGAIN, SO LONG OF BEING TREATED WITH NO RESPECT, THAT THE UNITED STATES WILL HELP AND NOT HURT. RELOCATING THE PIPELINE TO A MORE SUITABLE AREA AWAY FROM THE STANDING ROCK RESERVATION WOULD BE AN EASY AND HISTORIC STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. FOR THE SAKE OF OUR COUNTRY I HOPE THAT HAPPENS. Transcript obtained from: https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4632844/senator-reid-standing-rock

MSG1

ROOT ID
41c1696d9f949bc7a4c3702bf3880f86209951025f4aa55b740e5371c16f137e
PROFILES
WaterIsLife

MMv4ZUyo5vJFbKSXmaVt5feADsBTAyZ4mi
SIGNED BY
MRHHEYi4p9xtrSAK41FmUk9oaauSpAuHUD
BLOCK DATE
11/29/2016 2:56 AM
VERSION
1
BLOCKCHAIN
Maza
ADDRESS FILE
Address.dat
COST
0.12122000
LINK FILE
LNK
BUILD DATE
11/29/2016 2:57:53 AM
This file was archived and indexed using ADD. Get the latest version here.