Political Theater: What Deb Haaland at Interior means for Native Americans

Native Americans have long had a contentious relationship with the Interior Department. Now one of their own is at the helm of it, Deb Haaland, an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna. It was only in 2018 that the New Mexico Democrat made history as one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress. Now she is the first Native American to head a Cabinet department. Carla Fredericks, executive director of the Christensen Fund and an expert on indigenous people’s rights, discusses the significance of Haaland’s stewardship of the department that holds vast sway on land use, energy and Native American issues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices