HI all. I know I’ve been quiet since the Primary Election
last month despite having a lot more to say. I guess I had decided that I was
going to stay out of the election but as the day approaches so soon, I just can’t
stop thinking about how scary it is for our tribe if the same leadership
regains control. I say again people of LCO, everything I wrote was true and our
tribe is in a dire situation. If it wasn't true, then why didn’t anyone
dispute anything that I had written?
We still face the Madness of....
Literally a hundred tribal members forced out of tribal jobs
More and more director positions handed to non-tribals
Our casino will be in default in less than a year
Our tribal funds will be depleted within months if not already
Being bankrupt or borrowing in the millions again from Chippewa Valley Bank
The loss of our educational systems
Millions of dollars in grant funds missing
Tribal leaders still interested only in personal gain
Housing shortages while our leaders sell off 41 FEMA trailers
Off-Rez construction contractors getting tribal jobs and paying off leaders
Heroin and Meth exploding on our Rez with support of tribal leaders
Threats to employees of being fired if they speak out
Being fleeced by highly paid executives at our casino to the tune of $500,000 per year
Secret back door deals and secret files being taken for unknown purposes
and widespread fraud across the tribe
With the primary election it became clear that our people
wanted a change. Two incumbents were ousted and the other two were not among
the top three vote getters, one of them barely making the final eight. Although
our people didn’t choose me to represent them on this council, I firmly believe
they heard my message that things must change, they simply expressed that
desire by voting for other candidates who they believed would represent them with
real change in mind. Unfortunately, our people were duped and two of those
candidates don’t represent change. If elected, they will vote to support Mic
Isham and Norma Ross and continue on this same path of corruption and self-destruction
for our tribe. They are the two Jasons.
Jason Weaver told us all during the campaign that he wasn’t
for Mic, but he lied to our faces. He is Mic’s cousin and will support him. Mic
gave him his job at Public Works and has been his supporter. There’s not any
doubt in many people’s minds right now where he stands who were previously
duped by him in the Primary. Weaver is also untrustworthy. During the Primary
he talked about how much he was for the people and campaigned on “jobs for our
people,” but at the same time when one of his former employees applied for a
very good job at the St. Croix tribe in their Public Works department, he gave
him a bad reference. This was one of our tribal members who he undermined for
no good reason at all. This tribal member has a family. I’m not going to
mention names, but many of you know who I am talking about. He failed to get
the job only because Weaver (who has more ties to St. Croix than our own tribe)
told them not to hire him. We don’t need someone like that on our council. If
you want the same purge of tribal member employees that we have seen over the
past two years…then vote for Jason Weaver. If you want to protect tribal member
jobs…then think twice before you vote for Jason Weaver!
The same goes for Jason Schlender. He is also a big
supporter of the current direction of our tribe and will not change a thing.
Schlender will be an extension of the same old status quo. Joel Valentin is a
nice guy, but he is also a cousin to Mic and would support him to stay on as
chairman.
There is one good candidate of the top three vote getters
and that is Rose Gokee. She is fair and honest and will stand on her own. She
will not go with the status quo and become a yes vote for current leadership.
Whoever is chosen in the general election one thing is for
certain, the next council will have their hands full. They will inherit a mess.
I want you all to know that throughout this campaign I have had our tribe’s
best interest and future well-being at heart. I strongly believe our tribe
could be so much better and we could be a leader among Indian Country once
again. I say to you all right now that everything I have written is true and
accurate…It is not rumor and speculation. I have relied on very good sources
for information and when confronted, the council members couldn’t deny anything
and have actually admitted things…like selling those 41 FEMA trailers.
There are several candidates who represent keeping the
leadership as is and now a new chance for change has emerged because there are
still some candidates who could cause change and no, they are not the ones
hollering about change. This is my personal opinion of how I see things and I’d
like to share these thoughts with you all. Although we’ve had our differences
in the past, I believe Louis Taylor is our best chance to come out of this
mess. If you take a look at when Louis was chairman and compare to our current
chairman, there is a huge difference in the health of our tribe.
When Louis was chairman, at least our people were working
the jobs on this Rez and not working for non-tribals in nearly every
enterprise. Our council still held on to the principle that every tribal member
should have a job.
When Louis was chairman, our casino was making twice the
money it is today. Our management ran the casino instead of hiring a $500,000 per
year executive staff. And, the buffet was much better and more affordable then
than it is today with a six-figure executive chef and it was our people working
all the jobs at the casino. Let’s not forget that there was entertainment there
as well.
Two candidates who initially I voiced were supporters of Mic
are now supporting Louis Taylor for chair and those candidates are Brian
Bisonette and Little Guy. Even Little Guy, who has been a yes vote for Mic’s
wrongs over the past two years, is now vocally challenging this poor
leadership.
I could go on and on, but I don’t want this to become
another rant about how bad our tribal welfare has become…I’ll save that for
later. I just wanted to share with you all that change can and must still come.
Although I’m no longer a candidate for the council, I will keep up the fight
and will not stop advocating for new leadership of this tribe. We can’t afford
two more years!
I leave you with this final thought as you head into the
polls to vote for the future of our tribe on Saturday. It is up to you to save
our tribe from a dark future filled with economic hardship, more lost jobs, a
lost casino to bond holders, bankruptcy or massive debt to Gary Gerber and
Chippewa Valley Bank, homelessness, an out-of-control tribal leadership
sponsored drug culture, misspent and stolen grant funds, etc… You can vote for
candidates that will stop this madness and stop Mic Isham and Norma Ross.
Here are the candidates that will make that change…
Louis Taylor
Rose Gokee
Brian Bisonette
Gary “Little Guy” Clause
Don Carley
Here are the candidates that will vote to keep the
leadership the same and therefore, no change for another two years….
Jason Schlender
Jason Weaver
Joel Valentin
P.S. I haven’t discussed any of this blog with any of the
candidates. This isn’t any official endorsement. This blog is of my own
opinions on who I think would best represent the future of our tribe. Miigwech
and good luck LCO! The future can be bright or it can be dark…It’s all up to
you now!
