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The Federal Government and Congress We Think We Know By Chehalis Tribal Elder DeDe Devlin Did you know the Political Structure we live under in the Peace Makers plan. Peace Maker said Laws must „ The Senate is comprised of an equal number of the United States of America was patterned after the be established for all to follow. Peace Maker said elected representatives from each State in the Native American’s of the Iroquois League of Indian he had a way to assemble all the tribes and have the Union. Nations? Well it is true. Bigger Tribes and the Smaller Tribes represented Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Paine, equally. Peace Maker made two different Committees While the Colonies were attempting to form a United to serve on the League for Law Making for each Indian Charles Thomson and the Founding Fathers modeled States they had a problem, how to make each State Nation. One Committee would represent each tribe the United States after the Iroquois Federal System not have a fair voice in creating the Laws they would all with an equal number of voices for each of the Tribes only in broad outlines but also in many of the specifc follow, yet allow each State to have rights over their and the others Committee would represent each tribe provisions. Like the power to Impeach. In the Federal own internal affairs?. by how many members they had to care for in their System members of the League could be impeached by the women of their own Tribe if they dishonored So how and when did our Founding Fathers come up tribe. Peace Maker told each Tribal Nation to select the position. The United States stop short of copying with the Federal Government of the United States in members from their existing Tribes’ Council to sit on the part where only women impeached or where which America now operates under? The thought of the Federal League of Law Makers two Committees. women could hold offce. That came hundreds of years electing citizens from each State by the people who Peace Maker added, Tribal Nations would keep their later. The United States also copied the rules of War settled in the New World never operated anywhere separate Tribe’s Council to govern their own people’s Council. Any elected member of the League had to in European Countries or for that matter was never affairs, but would come together once a year to sit on quit his position in order to become a Warrior and any considered anywhere else in the known World. After two separate but equal Federal Committees. This he Warrior had to bury his weapons to hold offce. This all, in Europe Kings ruled over their people and call the Federal System. follows the traditions that relied upon separate Leaders the people served their Monarchs and Church. The Why separate Law Committees? Simple, the Bigger for War and Peace. In addition the Federal System English settlers who came here from Europe knew Tribes would not be equally represented if the Small allowed for adding tribes wanting to be under the little of Democracy. They came from countries ruled Tribes had an equal vote over them; Bigger Tribes had protection of the League as does the U.S. who started by Monarchs who claimed God conferred their right to more people to care for. The Small Tribes would not with 13 states and grew to 51. rule and even to allow them to wage wars of extinction be equally represented if it was based on population; over other humans. The settlers had fed from their the Bigger Tribes could out vote them every time. Henry Steele Commager later wrote the Indians rulers for the reason of centuries of debauchery, He explained Laws could be presented in either actually invent Federalism, but the United States took extravagance and oppression that exploited and at Committee but would have to be passed by both out a historical patent on it. Proclaiming the patent times starved their subject. Freedom to choose your Committees. Once both Committees agreed on a Law meant they had the rights as the inventor, REALLY! leader was unheard of. One of King Georges’ delegates that all tribes would honor the New Laws would come in the New World wrote back to King George to say: before the Chief of the Iroquois Nation called the The Peace Maker told the Indian that one day this “There is a dangerous way of thinking in the New Commander and Chief. He or She was selected by a Federal System would be acknowledged across the World among the Indians who live here. They select vote from all the Separate Tribal Nations to Rule over whole of Mother Earth. Leaders to serve the people; People are not here to the Iroquois League of Nations. (The Commanding The fnal extension of the federal principals used in the serve the leader.” Chief had to be a person well known and respected by Iroquois Nation formation of the United States came At the time Settlers came to the New World the all the Tribes.) The Law could not be honored by all later, in 1918 with the establishment of the League of Iroquois Nation controlled the territory from New the Tribes if the Commander and Chief did not okay it Nations. By ironic coincidence, the founding of this England to the Mississippi River, and built a Federal and read it before the Assembly of Committees. If the international body of representatives from Counties System that endured for centuries. The Iroquois Committees could not agree on a Law and they were throughout the World was located in New York in League united fve principal Indian Nations: the deadlocked the Commander and Chief would decide to the very territory that once belonged to the Iroquois Mohawk, Onondaga, Seneca, Oneida and Cayuga. either accept or strike it down. League of Nations. As the Peace Maker predicted the United States served as the platform for the While Benjamin Franklin held the Post of Indian Is this beginning to sound familiar? It should, this is international version of the Indians League of Nations. Commissioner during the 1750’s he became intimately the Federal Government we live under to this day. familiar with the Indian Political Culture. He realized Each State has its own Government of elected offcials To this day Washington D.C. has never recognized they had developed a governing arrangement among to deal with State internal affairs. Each of the States the role of Indians in the writing of the United States all the surrounding tribes called the Federal System is represented in Congress. Plus, each state votes for Constitution or the creation of the political institutions that worked so well he decided it was the solution to a President of the United States but he is still called that seem so uniquely American. the problem with uniting the States. the Commander and Chief. Like the Iroquois Federal References: Jack Weatherford: “Indian Givers” System the President has to confrm Laws passed by Franklin was told by the Indians that hundreds of years Congress and thereby sign the law into power or veto and “How the Indian Enriched America”; Bruce A. ago a well known and respected Shaman called Peace it. Burton: “Iroquois Confederated Law and the Origins Maker had a vision about all the Tribes. He said the of the U.S. Constitution”; Lester J. Cappon: “The tribes had to stop the fghting. Peace Maker said the The term Congress means the House of Representation Adams-Jefferson Letters”; Henry Steele Commager: vision showed how the people where suffering from and the Senate. People often think Congress only “How Europe Imagined and America Realized the endless wars. The vision showed how he could means the House. How are they different? Enlightenment”; Alexander A. Goldenweiser: bring peace to all the people. But to make the peace „ The House is comprised of elected members based “Iroquois Social Organization”; and Edmund Wilson: the tribes had to bury all their weapons and followed on population of each State in the Union. “Apologies to the Iroquois Page 6 chehalistribe.org  greatwolfodge.com  luckyeagle.com  eagleslandinghotel.net