Tuesday, June 13, 2006

Selective Sovereignty

Cecelia Fire Thunder, whose tenure as the Oglala Sioux Tribe President seems to be coming to a close via impeachment made herself famous for her claim that she was going to put an abortion clinic on reservartion land. Her argument stressed that South Dakota's ban on abortion was irrelevant to the Oglala Sioux because they had national sovereignty and were therefore completely independent of state and federal laws.

However, it turns out that Ms. Fire Thunder only desires sovereignty when it suits her. Thus, when she feels that the tribal council's actions against her smack of censure, she appeals to the U.S. Constitution for protection of her right to free speech. Also, she continues to want government money (both state and federal) to fund programs and services.

Like her friend and political ally, Tom Daschle, who attended Ms. Fire Thunder's most recent press conference, Ms. Fire Thunder has high principles -- which she's willing to drop in a heartbeat if there's a profit in it for herself or her political desires.