The Miccosukee Tribe is rejecting President Donald Trump’s claim that the tribe worked against his administration’s immigration efforts, the basis he used to veto a flood protection project in the Everglades.
In a statement to the Phoenix, the tribe wrote that it has “long supported President Trump’s commitment to Everglades restoration for the benefit of America’s public lands.”
“The Tribe has a constitutional duty to protect and defend the Everglades ecosystem, our traditional homelands. We never sought to obstruct the President’s immigration agenda. Instead, we have taken action to ensure sufficient environmental due diligence is performed to protect federal restoration investments,” Chairman Talbert Cypress wrote.
He added that the tribe was “disappointed to learn that the White House vetoed a measure intended to mitigate restoration impacts on a Tribal village.”
The bill, HR 504, called upon the Secretary of the Interior and the tribe “to take appropriate actions to safeguard structures within the Osceola Camp from flooding events.”
Trump vetoed the bill by Miami Republican Rep. Carlos Giménez despite widespread congressional support.
Politico reported Monday that the House will vote Thursday whether to override two vetoes, one being HR 504. That outlet reported “senior House Republicans and Democrats generally expect the chamber will approve the overrides in a rare rebuke of Trump.” However, “Less clear is whether either override vote would have enough support in the Senate.”
The second veto was a bill relating to federal funding for a Colorado water pipeline, also sponsored by a Republican. Democrats there believe the veto was politically motivated, Colorado Newsline reported.
In his veto letter, the president blamed the tribe for having “actively sought to obstruct reasonable immigration policies that the American people decisively voted for when I was elected.”
The tribe is part of a lawsuit against the state, claiming planners behind an immigration detention center in the Everglades, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” failed to follow federal environmental regulations in constructing the 3,000-bed facility.
“The measure reflected years of bipartisan work and was intended to clarify land status and support basic protections for tribal members who have lived in this area for generations — before the roads and canals were built, and before Everglades National Park was created. It was not about special treatment, but about public safety, environmental stewardship, and honoring long-recognized tribal interests,” Cypress wrote.
Trump, via his veto letter published Dec. 30 by the White House, said the tribe during former President Joe Biden’s administration sought “special treatment from the Federal Government.”
“My Administration is committed to preventing American taxpayers from funding projects for special interests, especially those that are unaligned with my Administration’s policy of removing violent criminal illegal aliens from the country,” Trump wrote.
The Tribe said it will continue to collaborate with Congress and the Florida delegation and the federal government.
The statement from Talbert Cypress pointed out that former longtime Chairman Billy Cypress “enjoyed a friendship with President Trump and was an early supporter of his campaign in 2016.”
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Contact Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com. Follow Florida Phoenix on Facebook and Twitter.
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