Frank Pallone: “I thank my ranking member. I rise to oppose H.R. 2362, the Indian Tribal Trade and Investment Demonstration Project Act.…”

“I thank my ranking member. I rise to oppose H.R. 2362, the Indian Tribal Trade and Investment Demonstration Project Act. To put it quite simply, there is no good reason for passage of this legislation. In fact, there are a whole bunch of reasons why this legislation should fail today. First, I would like to say that I strongly support efforts to bring economic prosperity to Indian Country. I've been a longtime advocate of Indian Country's right and power to exercise their sovereignty and pursue economic development in the ways they choose. That is why I was glad to vote for H.R. 205, the HEARTH Act. The HEARTH Act permits all tribes, not just a select few, to engage in leasing activities without Federal oversight under certain circumstances. Under the HEARTH Act, tribes can engage in these activities with both domestic and foreign entities. Furthermore, the HEARTH Act enjoys strong bipartisan support and passed this body on May 15 by a vote of 400-0. The bill then passed the Senate by unanimous consent, and it now only awaits the President's signature. In contrast, H.R. 2362 singles out the Republic of Turkey for preferential treatment. Anyone who questions this just needs to turn to the bill itself which states its purposes as ``to facilitate economic development by Indian tribes and encourage investment by Turkish enterprises.'' If this bill didn't give Turkey special preference, what would be the point?…”