Ross Swimmer

Senate panel approves Ross Swimmer nomination
THURSDAY, MARCH 6, 2003

In a near party line split, a Senate committee voted 10-5 on Wednesday to approve the nomination of Ross Swimmer as Special Trustee at the Department of Interior.

All Republican members of the panel voted yes, including chairman Ben Nighthorse Campbell of Colorado and John McCain of Arizona, who had earlier raised concerns about the nomination. Vice-chairman Daniel Inouye, Democrat of Hawaii, joined the yes crowd.

All but two Democrats voted against Swimmer.

The Democrats voting no were Kent Conrad of North Dakota, Harry Reid of Nevada, Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, Tim Johnson of South Dakota and Maria Cantwell of Washington.

The initial vote was 7 to 5 in favor of Swimmer. Then Orrin Hatch of Utah, who almost never attends the committee's hearings, showed up to vote yes. "I think he's an excellent choice," he said. He quickly departed.

Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a new member, weighed in with positive votes to bring the tally to 10.

Murkowski, appointed to the Senate by her father Frank Murkowski, now governor of Alaska, arrived late to the hearing but stayed to make comments and hear testimony about the Bush administration's 2004 budget request.

Swimmer, who ran the Bureau of Indian Affairs during the last three years of the Reagan administration, a time of major budget cuts and near-disastrous proposals, is a controversial figure in Indian Country. The Navajo Nation; the 16 tribes of the Great Plains in South Dakota, North Dakota and Nebraska; the Warm Springs Tribes of Oregon; the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma and the Absentee Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma were among those who opposed his nomination.

Almost an equal number supported Swimmer, a former principal chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. Backers included the Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma, the Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of Montana.

The debate over Swimmer largely occurred in private. At his confirmation hearing last month, there were few sparks and no outright confrontations.

At the conclusion of the hearing, Inouye, who once participated in a spoof of Swimmer in the late 1980s, remarked: "When do we vote?"

The only senators who have spoken out in public are Johnson and Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), who does not sit on the Indian affairs committee. Daschle said he was disappointed by yesterday's vote.

"The Special Trustee for American Indians will have much to say about the prospects for success of the trust reform effort," Daschle said. "I agree with South Dakota tribal leaders and the Great Plains Tribal Chairman's Association that Ross Swimmer is not the right man for this job, and I will oppose his nomination on the Senate floor."

Swimmer's experience as a tribal leader, banker and attorney has won him praise by the Bush administration. He was initially tapped by Secretary Gale Norton to head a new agency to handle Indian trust. But he was prevented from running the Bureau of Indian Trust Assets Management (BITAM) by overwhelming tribal opposition to the proposal.

The BITAM job would have been at the assistant secretary level while the special trustee has more power and carries the same weight as a deputy secretary, the number two post at the Interior.

Swimmer currently serves in an expanded trust capacity, responsible for "re-engineering" and implementing many of the failed reform efforts. If confirmed, he would be responsible for oversight of work he has put into gear. He told the Senate committee that he would remain independent and saw no conflict with his roles or history in the Indian trust arena.

Norton Applauds Nomination of Ross O. Swimmer
As Special Trustee for American Indians

Interior Secretary Gale A. Norton today applauded President Bush's nomination of Ross O. Swimmer, currently director of the Office of Indian Trust Transition and a former Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, to be Special Trustee for American Indians.

"Ross Swimmer is an outstanding selection to be Special Trustee for American Indians," Norton said. "The first Native American ever to be nominated to this position and a former tribal chief of the Cherokee Nation, he has an 18-year record of leadership and service to Indian Country and brings with him a wealth of experience in managing issues important to Native Americans."

"It is hard, in fact, to imagine a more qualified person than Ross Swimmer to be Special Trustee," Norton said. "He has a lifetime of service to Indian country as an advocate on behalf of tribes for tribal sovereignty through tribal self-sufficiency."

"Along with his deep knowledge of issues important to Native Americans, he has a strong background in banking and finance and in managing government programs as Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs in the Reagan administration," she said.

The position of Special Trustee for American Indians was created by Congress in the 1994 American Indian Trust Fund Management Reform Act. The Special Trustee ensures that the policies, procedures, practices, and systems of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Minerals Management Service, and the Bureau of Land Management related to the discharge of the Secretary's trust responsibilities are coordinated, consistent, and integrated. The Special Trustee also accounts for the daily and annual balance of all funds held in trust by the United States for the benefit of an Indian tribe or individual Indians and has direct fiduciary responsibility for these assets.

Swimmer served as Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs from 1985 to 1989. He was responsible for the general policy regarding Indian affairs and oversight of Indian activities. He had direct experience with the management of tribal trust funds and settlement of tribal water right claims in the West.

In 2001, Swimmer returned to the Department to serve as director of the Office of Indian Trust Transition.

Swimmer also served as principal chief of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, where he was elected to three successive terms. Under his leadership, he focused on implementing the concept of self-help for rural development, which became a model for Indian tribes and rural areas throughout the country.

During his tenure, the Cherokee Nation was recognized as innovative and progressive. His accomplishments as principal chief include improving economic development, health care, rural housing, water and waste water facilities, and education.

"I've known Ross Swimmer since he became Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation in 1975," said Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. " He was a chief with vision and determination for our tribe then and I think he would make an outstanding Special Trustee for American Indians now. I applaud the President for his nomination and I'm looking forward to working with Ross in the future."

Chairman John Barrett with the Citizen Pottawomi Nation in Shawnee Oklahoma said, "I wholeheartedly endorse the nomination of Ross Swimmer to be the next Special Trustee for American Indians. I believe he is uniquely qualified for the position and will protect the interests of Indian People."

Swimmer served as president of the Cherokee Group L.L.C., from 1995 to 2000. The Group is a consulting firm that represents Indian clients engaged in government issues at the state and federal level and supports the development of businesses on Indian lands.

Swimmer's prior positions include serving as "of counsel" to the law firm of Hall, Estill, Hardwick, Gable, Golden & Nelson, P.C., where he organized the Indian law practice section of the firm.

Swimmer also served as Chairman of First State Bank located in Hulbert, Okla., at the time, one of only two American Indian owned banks in the U.S. Before that he was Chairman and CEO of Cherokee Nation Industries, a manufacturing company that he reorganized in the mid-1970's during his term as principal chief.

With his roots in Oklahoma, Swimmer attended Oklahoma University, where he received both his Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor degrees.