CAROL KELLEY, Plymouth: Senate should vote against casino compact
EDITOR’S NOTE: Gov. Deval Patrick has signed a casino compact with the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, but before the tribe can build its proposed $500 million casino in Taunton, it needs to obtain U.S. Department of the Interior approval of a land-into-trust agreement.
There can never be any land in trust in the original 13 colonies because of the following court decisions:
The “property clause” of the United States Constitution (Article IV, Section 3, Clause 2),which concerns itself with federal territorial lands owned by the United States, has never applied in Massachusetts. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled on this. In a case known as Fletcher v. Peck, the court upheld the pre-emptive right of the original 13 colonies over their state land. There is no federal public domain land or federal reservation currently in the commonwealth, there never has been, nor can any be created since 25 USC. 465 with regulation 25 C.F.R. 151.9 only applies to other federal public domain lands that may be added to federal Indian reservations for the use of an Indian tribe which was recognized in 1934. No tribes in the 13 states were ever under federal jurisdiction or living on federal reserved land.
Alaska v. U.S. (2005): The federal government cannot establish reservation land without reserved rights. There is no federally owned land in any of the original 13 colonies. We entered the union with all of the land under state jurisdiction.
Hawaii v. Office of Hawaiian Affairs: Once land is transferred to state jurisdiction it is not eligible to be taken into federal jurisdiction. Feds can’t take land and give it to an Indian tribe.
Carcieri v. Salazar: No land in trust can be given to Indian tribes unless they were under federal jurisdiction in 1934. Lists of tribes that were recognized are available and were presented to the Supreme Court in Carcieri. They do not include the Mashpee Wampanoag.
Oneida Indian Nation v. Oneida County, New York, and United States v. New York: Upheld the U.S. Court of Appeals, which said that granting the Oneida Indian Nation’s land claims would be too disruptive to the state, local government and current owners of the land.
Land claims are dead, yet Gov. Deval Patrick put it in the compact. This is illegal according to federal law and would be too disruptive to the town of Mashpee.
Carol Kelley lives in Plymouth.
Speak Outs can be up to 400 words. They should be about issues of broad appeal. Please submit articles to: Commentary Page, The Patriot Ledger, P.O. Box 699159, Quincy 02269-9159 or by e-mail to editpage@ledger.com.
There can never be any land in trust in the original 13 colonies because of the following court decisions:
The “property clause” of the United States Constitution (Article IV, Section 3, Clause 2),which concerns itself with federal territorial lands owned by the United States, has never applied in Massachusetts. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court has already ruled on this. In a case known as Fletcher v. Peck, the court upheld the pre-emptive right of the original 13 colonies over their state land. There is no federal public domain land or federal reservation currently in the commonwealth, there never has been, nor can any be created since 25 USC. 465 with regulation 25 C.F.R. 151.9 only applies to other federal public domain lands that may be added to federal Indian reservations for the use of an Indian tribe which was recognized in 1934. No tribes in the 13 states were ever under federal jurisdiction or living on federal reserved land.
Alaska v. U.S. (2005): The federal government cannot establish reservation land without reserved rights. There is no federally owned land in any of the original 13 colonies. We entered the union with all of the land under state jurisdiction.
Hawaii v. Office of Hawaiian Affairs: Once land is transferred to state jurisdiction it is not eligible to be taken into federal jurisdiction. Feds can’t take land and give it to an Indian tribe.
Carcieri v. Salazar: No land in trust can be given to Indian tribes unless they were under federal jurisdiction in 1934. Lists of tribes that were recognized are available and were presented to the Supreme Court in Carcieri. They do not include the Mashpee Wampanoag.
Oneida Indian Nation v. Oneida County, New York, and United States v. New York: Upheld the U.S. Court of Appeals, which said that granting the Oneida Indian Nation’s land claims would be too disruptive to the state, local government and current owners of the land.
Land claims are dead, yet Gov. Deval Patrick put it in the compact. This is illegal according to federal law and would be too disruptive to the town of Mashpee.
Carol Kelley lives in Plymouth.
Speak Outs can be up to 400 words. They should be about issues of broad appeal. Please submit articles to: Commentary Page, The Patriot Ledger, P.O. Box 699159, Quincy 02269-9159 or by e-mail to editpage@ledger.com.
Read more: http://www.patriotledger.com/letters/x181547024/CAROL-KELLEY-Plymouth-Senate-should-vote-against-casino-compact#ixzz22EI9Sdca
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