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What does Senator Murkowski mean when he says we should "honor the sanctity of contractual commitments"?

Mr. Murkowski spoke on the Senate floor about the importance of honoring the sanctity of the federal government’s contract to remove nuclear waste from reactors across the country.

In 1863, the Federal Government signed the Treaty of Ruby Valley, giving lands in the Southwest United States to the Western Shoshone people.                         wpe4.gif (5202 bytes)

Seems like Mr. Murkowski only wants to honor contracts that lead to benefits for himself.

In 1999 alone, Mr. Murkowski received over $18,000 in Nuclear PAC contributions.

Documents supporting the Western Shoshone Nation's claims 

1. U.S. Constitution, Article VI, Paragraph 2: "This Constitution and the Laws of the United which shall be made in Pursuance thereof and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding."

2. Northwest Territorial Ordinance of 1787: "The utmost good faith shall always be observed toward the Indians; their lands and property shall never be taken from them without their consent; and in their property rights and liberty they never shall be invaded or disturbed."

3. Territory of Nevada Act, March 2, 1861: "Provided that nothing in act contained shall be construed to impair the rights of person or property now pertaining to the Indians in said Territory, so long as such rights shall be remain unextinguished by treaty between the United States and such Indians."

4. Treaty of Ruby Valley of 1863, signed by Nevada Territorial Gov. James Nye and 12 Indian leaders, including Te-Moak, ancestral chief of Western Shoshones, later proclaimed by Ulysses S. Grant and ratified by Congress in 1869: "It is understood that the boundaries of the country claimed and occupied by said lands are defined and described by them as follows: On the north by Wong-gong-da Mountains and Shoshone River Valley; on the west by Su-non-to-yah Mountains or Smith Mountains; on the south by Wi-co-bah and the Colorado Desert; on the east by Po-ho-no-be Valley or Valley and the Great Salt Lake Valley."

5. U.S. District Court decision, Reno, Sept. 1986, Judge Bruce Thompson: "The government has admitted that the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley is in full force and effect."