[Joe Brower]

Perhaps of interest.

[Ciexyz]

Fox News just reported that two previous Interior Secretaries have been held for contempt for the same offense.

So, what's the problem and why can't they fix it? What is this agency, the US Postal Service?! (/sarcasm)

[SierraWasp]

She may have inherited this from blabbering Babbutt, but her handling of the situation in the FL swamp with a Clinton style "Consensus/Collabortive" snooker the property owners effort is building contempt for her efforts to clean up the Babbutt mess in my mind, rapidly!

This Reagan appointed judge still has my support as long as he doesn't support the spread of Indian Casinos into rural residential areas of CA. All these bureaucratic bung-holes need to be publically horse-whipped till they can no longer deposit those huge and steady federal paychecks without actually fixing the messes they make.

Why is America and it's people so patient with these parasites?

[aShepard]

"Kemosabe, you put'em my wampum in a white man 'lock-box' not to be seen for many moons!"

[Salvation]

But stand by while the dims mix this into the mid-term re-election soup of non-information, twisted information and Bush bashing.

[martin_fierro]

Behold The Man!

[Ben Ficklin]

A few months ago the amount needed to repair the books was in the news. I can't recall the amount except to say it was a staggering amount and didn't include the actual money due the indians.

[Vince Ferrer]

Babbit's excuses and evasions became well known here on FR. We thought it was just the Clinton MO at the time, but if Norton is doing the same thing, then something is very, very wrong here. The Indians need to take a wrench out to their fields and turn off the gas until the government comes clean. Its their gas on their land, they need to quit putting up with this.

[tomball]

"We have tried to use appropriate standards and aspire to a high level of accounting responsibility," Norton said. "I'm not sure if in every instance we have met that standard."

"In 1999, Lamberth held Babbitt and Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin in contempt and fined them $600,000 for failing to turn over documents in the 5-year-old class-action lawsuit brought by Indian landowners. "

"Any fines imposed against Norton would be paid by the department, as were those imposed against Babbitt and Rubin. "

It seems that the government is perpetuating an accountability problem. Babbit and Rubin left office without paying a dime, doing any time, or being fired, as they deserved. Our taxes paid a $600,000 bill for contempt of court charges while simultaneously paying their salaries. While Judge Lamberth may appear frustrated, it has so far taken him six years and two administrations to still get nowhere, the Indians no answers, and the Interior wanting more money to "fix" a problem. While Lamberth appears angry, his job is still not done. Meanwhile, Babbit and Rubin left their offices and were rewarded with corporate or institutional positions based on their performance on the job while working for the Clinton Administration.

The government wants private sector CEOs and the likes to be accountable, but negates being responsible or accountable for itself. As long as ANY administration continues to foot contempt bills, and attorney fees for defendents who are deliberately being strung out by the courts, Indian Trust money will continue to be "lost, misappropriated, stolen or never collected," and the government will continue to acknowledge these facts for the next hundred years - in the courts - paid for by the taxpayers - long after Judge Lamberth, and the Indians who filed this case are gone.

Afterall, the Department of Interior is a government agency. Its funds are infinite in that it is funded by our tax dollars. As it stands now, the Department of Interior can't account for the agency's handling of $500 million a year in royalties and payouts, but the Department (govenment) via court (government) order pays $600,000 contempt fees and multi-million dollar annual defendant attorney fees, and continues to get departmental funding for an accounting program that hasn't worked in six years. I am sure everyone but the American Taxpayers and Indians who were, and are still, being robbed are quite comfortable with the status quo.