Mohegan tribal authorities attend Trump's inauguration

Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribal Council; his brother Mark, a former council chairman and current council member; and Chuck Bunnell, the tribe’s chief of staff, are making the trip to Washington, D.C.

“We look forward to working with the new president,” Bunnell said. “We see the fact that they are meeting with tribes the day before he takes the oath as a very good sign. Tribal sovereignty is not political and we have good friends from the entire spectrum.”
Kevin Brown said President Barack Obama’s administration “has been the most supportive of Indian tribes in a long time," adding, "We want to make sure none of that momentum gets lost.”

The Mohegans, owners of Mohegan Sun, are one of two federally recognized sovereign tribes in Connecticut, the other being the Mashantucket Pequots, who own Foxwoods Resort Casino.

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Trump, once heavily invested in the casino industry in Atlantic City, has a history of clashing with Indian tribes

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He was once a business partner of the Paucatuck Eastern Pequots of North Stonington, agreeing to bankroll the tribe’s efforts to gain federal recognition and open a tribal casino, which never happened.

No one from Mashantucket is attending the inauguration, Lori Potter, the Mashantuckets’ director of communications, said Wednesday. Katherine Sebastian-Dring, the Eastern Pequots' chairwoman, said she didn't know whether any members of her tribe were planning to attend.

"President-elect Trump is very familiar with the gaming industry. As a business leader, it’s likely that he will work toward strengthening the U.S. economy, which includes the gaming industry,” Potter wrote in an email.

"As for Indian Country, we hope President Trump is willing to work with tribes,” she wrote. “It’s very important to Indian Country that the many commitments in the U.S. Constitution, laws, treaties, statutes, executive orders and policies pertaining to tribal sovereignty are upheld, and that President Trump advocates for and enforces government-to-government consultations with tribes whenever proposed or existing legislation, developments, policies, laws, and federal funding impact tribes.”

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During the presidential campaign, the Mashantuckets called on Trump, then the presumptive Republican nominee, to stop using racist language and offensive actions against Native Americans and other minorities

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The tribe’s statement came amid repeated airings of Trump’s 1993 appearance at a congressional hearing at which he questioned the Mashantuckets’ authenticity.

“They don’t look like Indians to me,” Trump said at the hearing, during which he also claimed organized crime had infiltrated tribal casinos.

Rodney Butler, the Mashantucket tribal chairman, said in July that his tribe had an obligation to speak out against Trump’s “racially charged rhetoric and bigotry.”

As president, Trump could affect tribal affairs through his appointments to posts in the Department of the Interior, which includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and to seats on the Supreme Court, which has a vacancy. A tribal sovereignty case involving the Mohegans was heard by the court earlier this month.

In addition, the American Gaming Association has contacted Trump’s transition team in regard to such issues as the U.S. legalization of sports betting and off-reservation tribal casinos. The Mohegans, in addition to operating Mohegan Sun, operate commercial gaming facilities in other states and, in partnership with the Mashantuckets, are seeking to develop a commercial casino in Connecticut.