S362 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE February 2, 2004 of this property is distributed under the tified mail to the Federal Reserve Bank in garage sales, raffles and donations from fam- same program that dealt with Moses Bruno. Oklahoma City, Okla. The deposit sheet list- ily and friends, that he hopes will eventually Five years ago, his descendants began track- ed the source of each check, its amount and allow the family to pay for an organized ing their patrimony. Their experience shows the day’s total deposits. Daily entries were study of its Potawatomi culture and lan- how difficult it can be to prove past wrongs also made in the office’s cash-receipts jour- guage. He and his wife Veta attend the an- and have them redressed. nal, registering the payment to each indi- nual gatherings of the nine Potawatomi Family members say Moses Bruno was vidual Indian account on a ledger card. bands, now scattered over several states. never allowed to see his oil and gas account Sorting through those old documents, with Leon has gone through the training and fast- ledgers. It might not have done him much the lingering resentments the families have ing that are required of those chosen as the good if he had been, given that, like many toward the BIA, can be confusing. When tribe’s honored fire keepers. And he has built Indians of his generation, he had never Dana Dickson began comparing the amounts a roundhouse on his property in Tecumseh, learned to read and could write only his posted to her great grandfather’s ledger card OK, where family members gather four times name. When his eldest son Johnnie argued with the sums on the deposit sheets for the a year to light a sacred fire and pray for the that the government was robbing him blind, same days, she discovered that 10% was rou- memory of their ancestor Moses Bruno. the older man insisted that the Indian-agen- tinely funneled from the oil check to a spe- cy people would never cheat him. cial-deposit account. Dickson and her rel- f After World War II, Bruno’s children tried atives suspected that corrupt agents were HONORING MONROE SWEETLAND to sue the oil company for saltwater damage taking the money for themselves. But Ross Mr. REID. Mr. President, I would like to their soil caused by the pumping from the Swimmer, a Department of the Interior om- wells. ‘‘But even though my dad Johnnie budsman working on behalf of Indian-trust to say a few words about a citizen of took photos,’’ says Ruby Withrow, 69, ‘‘we beneficiaries, told TIME that the deduction, the great western part of America, couldn’t prove Moses had not allowed the which was not exclusively to Moses Bruno’s Monroe Sweetland. salty runoff. There was no paper trail at that account, was simply a fee that the BIA Monroe lives in Oregon, where he has time.’’ Nor was there money to pay for a law- charged for managing the oil and gas prop- enjoyed a wonderful life of public serv- yer. Over the years, family members looked erties held by the trust funds. ice. He has been a State Senator, a na- for documents that could prove the bureau Nearly two years after the elder Brunos tional leader of teachers, a journalist, had treated Moses Bruno badly. They went died in 1960, a Shawnee bureau agent sug- to the National Archives in Washington, vis- gested that the family sell its remaining 40 and the publisher of a number of small ited historical societies in Oklahoma and re- acres, along with the property’s mineral newspapers. quested records from BIA offices in Shawnee rights. ‘‘[The minerals have only a] nominal He served in the Pacific with the Red and nearby Anadarko, Okla. Always they value,’’ the agent wrote in a letter to the re- Cross during World War II. After re- were told that few records were available. gional BIA office in Anadarko. The family turning home he became the political The Cobell case reassured the Brunos that signed off on the sale, netting a $3,022.50. In director for the National Education As- others had had similarly unhappy experi- 1982 a new oil well was drilled on that land sociation in the western States. ences with their BIA trust funds and moti- and is still pumping. He was a confidant of Eleanor Roo- vated them to dig deeper for documents to The Bruno family acknowledges the pres- sevelt and an ally of President Harry support their complaints. Finally, after a 16- sure the BIA was under during the oil-boom hour marathon on the Internet in the fall of years. In the 1935 annual report of the Shaw- Truman. 1998, Dana Dickson, Ruby Withrow’s daugh- nee agency, the superintendent called his of- His home in Milwaukie, OR, which ter, discovered on an obscure Indian arts- fice ‘‘woefully undermanned,’’ handling 1,500 was built in 1878, is a historic land- and-crafts site a link to Oklahoma Indian— Indian money accounts with only one clerk, mark. That isn’t just because it is an agency files located at the regional National who had no modern account machines. old house, but also because of the many Archives in Fort Worth, Texas. A family del- ‘‘Maybe there were some mistakes made,’’ important people who visited him egation immediately made the trip. ‘‘I’ll says Leon Bruno. ‘‘[But] a lot of what went there. never forget the first time we went down on was deliberate.’’ The family estimates The most famous visitor was Presi- there,’’ says Dickson’s cousin Johnnie that Moses Bruno earned a total of $35,000 dent John Kennedy. In fact, I have Flynn. ‘‘Dana and I were pulling file after from his oil and gas leases. The production file. One of them was Moses Bruno’s. It was figures the descendants unearthed, on just been told that Monroe’s wife Lillie was three inches thick. I stopped and looked over one well on the land that was sold in 1993, the person who suggested to JFK that at my mother and my Aunt Ruby. There amount to almost $70 million. a rocking chair would ease the pain in were tears streaming down their faces.’’ It is not clear whether the family will ever his back. They found grocery receipts and bills from receive compensation for any miscalcula- Others who visited Monroe and Lillie JCPenney for socks at 15[cents] a pair and a tions that may have been made on their land included Vice President Hubert Hum- coat for $14.66. The purchase order from the sales and oil leases. Elouise Cobell’s class ac- phrey, Ambassador John Kenneth Indian agency for Moses’ first car was there, tion has stalled in the face of the Depart- Gailbraith, and Senators Wayne Morse, as were numerous voucher slips endorsed ment of the Interior’s estimate that it would with his tentative, spidery signature. Most take five years and $335 million just to ac- ‘‘Scoop’’ Jackson and Estes Kefauver. important, there were pages of ledger sheets count for the money from land and mineral Monroe recently turned 94 years old. detailing his individual BIA money account. leases covering a period of more than 100 Although he has been legally blind for More than half a dozen visits later, Moses’ years. And Congress is balking at the ex- several years, he is fond of saying that grandson Leon Bruno has accumulated pense—even though its committees have he has lost his sight, but not his vision. enough photocopies of documents to fill 19 issued more than one report over the years As a former newsman, he still enjoys loose-leaf notebooks. Papers show that about gross mismanagement of Native Amer- having the paper read to him by visi- Moses’ entire 80-acre allotment first came ican trust funds. In December the Bruno de- tors. under an oil lease in 1923. Six years later, ac- scendants decided to withdraw from the He has been called the father of the cording to BIA documents, 20 of those acres Cobell suit and hired a lawyer to pursue were sold to two local white men for $1,311, their own. modern Democratic Party in Oregon, or $65.55 an acre. The family has found con- ‘‘It’s not about the money,’’ says Moses’ and a founding father of Portland State tradicting government estimates of the granddaughter Ruby Withrow, a nurse who University. land’s royalty value at the time, ranging administers a diabetes program for the Ab- He is also responsible, more than any from $50 to $400 an acre. And documents are sentee Shawnee tribe. ‘‘I want some justice other person, for a very important unclear about whether Moses Bruno under- for a man who trusted the United States and piece of Federal legislation—the Bilin- stood before the transaction was completed was betrayed.’’ The BIA has looked into the gual Education Act of 1968. that the land was being sold. A well was family’s claims and says that while the That law opened the doors of edu- drilled on these 20 acres in 1933 and still records for Moses Bruno’s account may not pumps to this day. be complete, ‘‘no instance of malfeasance cation and opportunity to young people In 1931 Bruno got permission from the BIA was found in the records that we examined.’’ in the West and other parts of the to withdraw 20 separate acres of his allot- In a fax to TIME, the agency stated that country who are native speakers of ment from the trust, and he began selling ‘‘understandably, the family did not review Spanish. percentages of his oil and gas royalty inter- these files with a historian’s commitment to Up until then, these students were est. Four wells were eventually drilled on objectivity.’’ often placed in classes where they the remaining BIA-controlled 40 acres and Still, the search for what happened to couldn’t understand what was going on, pumped from march 1939 to the end of 1941. It Moses Bruno’s land has produced a new sense with disastrous results. But in the was the practice then for oil companies to of equanimity for his family. There have send royalty-payment checks for Indian- been several meetings to bring all the de- early 1960s a number of innovative pro- owned property directly to the super- scendants—some 200 plus—up to date on the grams began to spring up, including a intendent of the local BIA office. Each day stories the documents tell. Leon Bruno has successful one at Pueblo High School the Shawnee office made a deposit via cer- started a nonprofit corporation, funded by in Tucson.

VerDate Mar 15 2010 21:41 Jan 29, 2014 Jkt 081600 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 4637 Sfmt 0634 E:\2004SENATE\S02FE4.REC S02FE4 mmaher on DSKCGSP4G1 with SOCIALSECURITY February 2, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE S363 In 1966, Monroe organized a sympo- LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT ACT cretionary outlays authorized by Con- sium on the education of Spanish OF 2003 gress were lower than spending re- speaking children. Prominent edu- Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise quested by the President was in 1996. cators and elected officials from West- today to speak about the need for hate According to the Cato Institute, real ern States came together, and a con- crimes legislation. On May 1, 2003, Sen- discretionary spending increases in fis- sensus emerged that bilingual edu- ator KENNEDY and I introduced the cal years 2002, 2003 and 2004 are three of cation was a realistic approach to the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement the 10 largest annual increases in the needs of Spanish speaking students. Act, a bill that would add new cat- last 40 years. Also, the Congressional U.S. Senator Ralph Yarborough of egories to current hate crimes law, Budget Office reports that if current Texas credited Monroe for his decision sending a signal that violence of any appropriations maintain the same rate to attend the symposium, which influ- kind is unacceptable in our society. of growth we have given them since enced him to sponsor the Bilingual One such crime occurred in Fort 1999, we will increase discretionary Education Act of 1968. Wayne, IN, on March 29, 2002. John spending by $2.7 trillion over 10 years Once the bill was introduced, Monroe Runner, a 34-year-old gay man with and every penny of added spending will Sweetland helped marshal support for disabilities, was found severely beaten be reflected in the Federal deficit and it. He arranged witnesses for the hear- in his home. He had also suffered sub- debt. Some people may take comfort in ings, and he persuaded the NEA to en- stantial burns caused by hot bacon CBO’s baseline projections that show dorse it. Without his efforts, it would grease. Part of his brain had to be re- the budget reaching surplus in 2013. Let not have passed. moved during emergency surgery. Law enforcement agents allege that Run- me tell my colleagues these projections The Latino community in the United should not lull us into a false sense of States has come a long way since 1968. ner’s cousin and roommate, Maurice Ellis, found Runner in bed with an- complacency. But we are still fighting to provide bet- First, CBO itself explains the base- other man and an argument ensued. In- ter education opportunities for Latino line projections must estimate the fu- vestigators say that Ellis proceeded to students. As we continue to press on- ture paths of Federal revenues and beat and torture Runner over a 12-hour ward, I hope we never forget the con- spending under current laws and poli- period. Runner was unable to defend tributions of Monroe Sweetland and cies. The baseline is therefore not in- himself due to his disability. others who helped pass the Bilingual tended to be a prediction of future I believe that Government’s first Education Act of 1968. budgetary outcomes. Simply put, the duty is to defend its citizens, to defend On a personal note, my long-time CBO baseline projection assumes Con- them against the harms that come out chief of staff Rey Martinez was nur- gress will restrict the growth of spend- of hate. The Local Law Enforcement tured in the ways of politics by Mon- ing to the rate of inflation, less than 3 Enhancement Act is a symbol that can roe. Rey would be the first to acknowl- percent a year and less than half its become substance. I believe that by edge Monroe’s political acumen, and I current rate of 7 percent. CBO also es- passing this legislation and changing would be the second. Oregon and our timates that Congress will allow Fed- current law, we can change hearts and entire country are a better place be- eral revenues as a percentage of GDP minds as well. cause of this good man. to increase from 15.9 percent to 20.1 f percent, almost a one-third increase. Does anyone seriously believe Con- f THE FEDERAL BUDGET gress will restrict spending or increase Mr. VOINOVICH. Mr. President, I HONORING OUR TROOPS taxes by the amounts required to meet rise today to discuss an issue that I the CBO projections? I wish I could say DEATH OF SGT CORY R. MRACEK have been known to have some that I believed these projections but I Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I rise to thoughts on from time to time and outgrew fairy tales a long time ago. express my sympathy over the loss of that is our Nation’s fiscal situation Second, if we are honest with our- Cory R. Mracek, a fellow Nebraskan and this body’s approach to its budget selves, many people just do not think and sergeant in the United States responsibilities. deficits are important anymore. the Army. Sergeant Mracek was killed on First, I would like to congratulate commonly heard refrain from some of January 27 when his patrol was at- my colleagues for passing the Omnibus my colleagues is that Ronald Reagan tacked near Iskandariyah, Iraq. He was Appropriations bill. In this bill, we proved deficits don’t matter. Mean- 26 years old. Sergeant Mracek served in funded all of the President’s priority while, some people only seem to care the 3rd Battalion, 319th Airborne Field items requested in the fiscal year 2004 about deficits when they get in the way Artillery Regiment, 82nd Airborne Di- budget and still restricted discre- of increased spending. vision, based in Fort Bragg, NC. tionary spending to $876 billion. In 1995, the first year Republicans I recognize that many people were controlled Congress, spending grew by A resident of Hay Springs, NE, Ser- dissatisfied with this legislation. Some $25 billion. In 2004, with Republicans geant Mracek was a dedicated soldier people believe Congress spends too lit- still in control of Congress, spending who was committed to his family and tle and last year my colleagues on the will increase by $224 billion. Essen- country. Sergeant Mracek enlisted in other side of the aisle offered amend- tially, the amount we increase spend- the Army after graduating from Hay ments that would have added over $87 ing each year has grown tenfold in just Springs High School in 1995. His moth- billion to total spending in fiscal year 9 years. er, Pat, said her son was a good soldier 2004. Other people believe Congress Well, I am here to tell you deficits who ‘‘was very proud of his country,’’ spends too much and asked President are important. After 10 years as Mayor and loved serving in the Armed Forces. Bush to veto the Omnibus Appropria- of Cleveland and 8 years as Governor of In addition to his mother, Sergeant tions bill because it contains too much Ohio, I can tell you exactly why defi- Mracek is survived by his father, ‘‘pork’’. It seems that neither extreme cits are important. When a local or James, and sisters, Stacy and Heather. was pleased by the fiscal result, which State government allows its finances Our thoughts and prayers are with each may be the best indication we did the to become dangerously unbalanced, of them at this difficult time. right thing. I will not claim the fiscal creditors demand higher and higher Sergeant Mracek and thousands of year omnibus is perfect. Nevertheless, premiums on municipal bonds until in- brave American service men and this bill represents the best possible terest rates become unsustainable. women confront danger every day in compromise between true fiscal dis- Contractors withhold goods and serv- Iraq and their tremendous sacrifices cipline and Congress’ desire to spend. ices or demand strict payment terms as must never be taken for granted or for- Unfortunately, this is our eighth con- a condition of doing business. Taxes gotten. For his service, bravery, and secutive year of compromising fiscal are often raised, which has a serious sacrifice, I ask my colleagues to join discipline and the American people are impact on businesses and families. Fi- me and all Americans in honoring Sgt. beginning to wonder when we will ever nally, government leaders are forced to Cory Mracek. get our act together. The last time dis- make draconian cuts in public services.

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