Posted by
Defend America on Monday, March 01, 2010 11:05:19 PM
Congress Tries to Break Hawaii in Two
A racial spoils precedent that could lead to new 'tribal' demands across the U.S.
Last
week, the House of Representatives, in a largely party-line vote,
passed the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act. Popularly
known as "the Akaka bill," this piece of legislation might turn out to
be this Congress's single most calamitous decision.
The bill creates a complex federal
framework under which most of the nation's approximately 400,000 ethnic
Hawaiians can organize themselves into one vast Indian tribe. It endows
the tribe with the "inherent powers and privileges of self-government,"
including the privilege of sovereign immunity from lawsuit. It also by
clear implication confers the power to tax, to promulgate and enforce a
criminal code, and to exercise eminent domain. Hawaii will in effect be
two states, not one.
The method used to create this tribe should make everyone squeamish.
The bill delegates the delicate task of deciding who may join the tribe
to a federal commission appointed by the secretary of the Interior.
Ultimately, the tribe itself will have the power to expel members or
invite new ones.
Earlier versions of the bill demanded
that the secretary appoint only ethnic Hawaiians as commissioners. In
the current version, only those with "10 years of experience in the
study and determination of Native Hawaiian genealogy" and "an ability
to read and translate . . . documents written in the Hawaiian language"
may serve on the commission. These commissioners will examine an
applicants' backgrounds to ensure that only "qualified Native
Hawaiians" with the right amount of Hawaiian blood join the tribe.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703411304575093180795586118.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTTopOpinion