Gover Was Found In Civil Contempt in Cobell Case
by Chris Castell
Washington Bureau
The Daily Oklahoman
An Oklahoma native now serving as the director of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian is being mentioned as a candidate for interior secretary in the administration of President-elect Barack Obama. Kevin Gover, 53, was being promoted on Monday by a Washington-area public relations group with environmental concerns. The Interior Department has vast authority, overseeing public lands and American Indian issues. Gover, who grew up in Lawton and Norman and practiced law in New Mexico, was appointed by President Bill Clinton as head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs in 1997. The BIA is part of the Interior Department. A member of the Pawnee Tribe of Oklahoma, Gover has headed the American Indian museum since last year. Should Gover get the nod for the Cabinet position, his nomination might be opposed by some of the plaintiffs in the long-running Indian trust case. Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff in the case, said Gover had "thumbed his nose” at the Indian people. Gover was one of three government officials found in civil contempt by the federal judge who once presided over the case.
|
