[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 98 (Wednesday, July 10, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Page S5618]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                     REMEMBERING DR. CLINTON PATTEA

 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I would like to acknowledge the 
passing of longtime tribal leader Dr. Clinton Pattea, the president of 
the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation in Arizona.
  Dr. Pattea was one of the longest serving Native American public 
officials in the Nation. Last year--coinciding with the State of 
Arizona's centennial celebration--we marked Dr. Pattea entering his 
50th year of service to the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation's tribal 
council. While he held a variety of elected posts, including tribal 
councilman and vice president, most of his time in office was spent 
serving as the tribe's president.
  President Pattea was a true visionary in his community and throughout 
Indian Country. He was a strong advocate for the principles of tribal 
self-governance and Indian self-determination, which over the years 
helped bring about positive change in the relationship between the 
Federal Government and all Native Americans.
  He was among the first tribal leaders in Arizona to acknowledge the 
tremendous economic potential that Indian gaming offered his people. 
Dr. Pattea was a fierce advocate for developing a government-to-
government relationship with the State of Arizona and worked tirelessly 
to spearhead a voter-approved tribal gaming compact that has made 
Arizona the pinnacle of regulated Indian gaming that we know today.
  Over the past 30 years, I have personally witnessed the Fort McDowell 
Yavapai make tremendous strides as a community, and I attribute much of 
that success to Dr. Pattea's leadership. He directed his tribal 
government to develop business ventures to help take his community out 
of poverty; he successfully fought for the Nation's Federal water 
rights settlement; and he assembled a tribal government that is among 
the best examples of a sovereign governing body in the country. Today, 
the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation stands as a leader in the Valley of 
the Sun as well as the United States.
  We were fortunate to have been enriched by Dr. Pattea's passion for 
public service. His work with the tribal council brought him immense 
satisfaction. It is fitting that his legacy will continue on through 
the recently established Dr. Clinton M. and Rosiebelle Pattea 
Foundation, which will fund tribal scholarships for education, culture, 
health and wellness programs in his name.
  I offer my deepest condolences to the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation on 
Dr. Clinton Pattea's passing. My thoughts and prayers are with his 
tribal members and his loved ones.

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