Snyder at event with Obama team
WASHINGTON — Seneca Nation President Barry E. Snyder Sr. on Thursday joined tribal leaders from across the country for a daylong conference with Obama administration officials, including two appearances by the president himself.
But a key federal issue for the Senecas — the possible lifting of a federal ban on off-reservation casinos — never came up, Snyder said.
The issue of off-reservation casinos is important to the Senecas because they are interested in building a gaming facility in the Catskills, as are other tribes.
Snyder said the tribe has dealt with that issue separately in meetings with the state’s two senators. Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N. Y.,said earlier this week that the administration was nearing a decision on whether to lift or modify the ban, which was imposed by the Bush administration.
Other matters particular to Indian tribes, such as sovereignty and environmental issues, were discussed during the outreach event involving the president, top officials and nearly 400 tribal leaders.
“You will not be forgotten as long as I’m in this White House,” Obama told the audience at the Interior Department, where he appeared both early in the conference and toward the end.
The White House Tribal Nations Conference included sessions on economic development, education, health care, public safety and housing. As part of it, the president sent a memo to Cabinet agencies asking that they give him plans for improving relations between the government and the tribes.
Snyder said that it was the first time he could remember a president convening such a conference to seek the input of Native American leaders.
“It was a good session,” Snyder said. “The question is, is there going to be follow-up to it, or is it just a good session?”
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