Cherokee Nation wants to send a delegate to the House

[Sommerswerd]

Indeed.

 

[Farm Boy]

It's either the right thing to do or not.

 

[Sommerswerd]

Well of course sandwiches are the right thing to do generally. The rightness of specific sandwiches is debatable, based on a multitude of factors... Puerto Rico, less so.

At any rate, giving the Cherokee Nation a House Rep seems not to be as straightforward.

 

[uppi]

At any rate, giving the Cherokee Nation a House Rep seems not to be as straightforward.

I don't think so. Their population is large enough that they would not be grossly over-represented by having a House Rep. Make a virtual Cherokee district, redistrict Oklahoma and you are mostly done.

Of course, it is unlikely to happen, but that is because of unwillingness, not because it is actually complicated

 

[Farm Boy]

It's not as straightforward because one situation is that a population is represented in federal governance as per the general representation of the citizenry. The other situation is not. If they've passed their referendum, finally, requesting the votes and the taxes then they deserve the votes and the taxes, as per the general representation of the citizenry.

If we're going to get into carving existing states into smaller states, I can think of worse conservation-minded policy than giving the senators (mostly) to the West and Midwest. Might even get right to repair. But yes, complicated. We got into a war in name about this once.

 

[mdl5000]

I imagine there are a lot of treaties the US does not follow, that doesn't give anyone the right to effectively have double-representation. (I mean, is it my imagination or are native American peoples already all US citizens?)

I mean, if their gripe is that the reservation system is a mess, which it is, that can be addressed on its own terms.

 

[Bamspeedy]

I don't think so. Their population is large enough that they would not be grossly over-represented by having a House Rep. Make a virtual Cherokee district, redistrict Oklahoma and you are mostly done.

Of course, it is unlikely to happen, but that is because of unwillingness, not because it is actually complicated

So are you proposing gerrymandering native americans in Oklahoma into one district?

Interesting.

I imagine there are a lot of treaties the US does not follow, that doesn't give anyone the right to effectively have double-representation. (I mean, is it my imagination or are native American peoples already all US citizens?)

I mean, if their gripe is that the reservation system is a mess, which it is, that can be addressed on its own terms.

Yes, they are US citizens, pay federal taxes and can vote in elections for president and for reps in congress.