Analysis: Cherokee Principal Chief Bill John Baker this Friday has invited guests to witness as he signs away long-held Cherokee Nation hunting and fishing rights in return for giving the State of Oklahoma an estimated $300,000 to $500,000 per year by compact.

There is a planned committee meeting then a Council Meeting Thursday.  Invitations to a compact signing ceremony have been mailed for the Friday event, but details on the compact may not be fully or broadly known until it is law.

Former Principal Chief and candidate in the current race, Chief Chad Smith asserted in 2006 that based on the 1975 Menominee vs. US decision, holding a “blue card” is all the hunting and fishing license any Cherokee needs in the fourteen counties comprising the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma.

Continue reading →

Breitbart.com reminds us the easiest way to pay a debt of gratitude is with respect and commemoration.

On Memorial Day, remember to pause for a minute of silent honor at 3 PM, local time.

Memorial Day is still officially known as Decoration Day. It is a day to remember those who have died in all of our wars. There are many commemorations across America and in our territories. Do most Americans really know and act appropriately on Memorial Day — or has it just become the unofficial start of summer?

Continue reading →

Katy and David Arnett, Tulsa Today during interview.

Katy would prefer to avoid the drama, but her ex-boyfriend-housemate issued a press release soon after his appointment to one of the most powerful positions in the Oklahoma Republican Party. Katy is a Republican activist that attended county and state conventions since her ex, Thomas Clint (TC) Ryan, inspired her to become active in politics and even after he bit and beat her in a domestic assault and battery. He pled guilty to assault and battery in the presence of a minor and to interference with an emergency telephone call.

Katy says Ryan and his “companion” employer and recently elected OKGOP Chairman Randy Brogdon have attempted to diminish and dismiss the incident that occurred in 2012, but in an exclusive interview with Tulsa Today, Katy says she will not be silenced and her story is true. Further Katy said the call by attorney Corbin C. Brewster, son and employee of one of Oklahoma’s most visible attorneys, Clark O. Brewster, was the final straw in her decision to speak on the record with this writer.

Continue reading →

Cherry Springs Golf Course: cherokeephoenix.org

Many reader comments have been posted to our series on the Cherokee National Elections. Most post to the story, but some email the editor. One of the most compelling and election critical follows, but first in response to the story on the Cherokee Nation Businesses (CNB) purchase of the Cherry Springs Golf Course, Amanda Clinton wrote that the story contained “Incorrect, libelous and/or misleading” information.

Tulsa Today stands by the story.

Continue reading →