{"id":25162,"date":"2024-10-27T00:48:54","date_gmt":"2024-10-27T06:48:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/tim-walz-speaks-to-the-navajo-nation\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T23:11:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T05:11:13","slug":"tim-walz-speaks-to-the-navajo-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/tim-walz-speaks-to-the-navajo-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"Tim Walz speaks to the Navajo Nation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Minnesota
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz addresses the crowd Saturday amid chants of \u201cYiiyah Man\u201d at the Navajo Nation's Veterans Memorial Park in Window Rock, Arizona. (Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and the Kamala Harris campaign made a stop in Window Rock, Arizona, on Saturday to speak to Navajo Nation voters as \u201cYiiyah Man\u201d chants and Skoden Vote signs filled Veterans Memorial Park.<\/p>\n

Former Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley, the first to address the crowd, encouraged voters to join him in backing Walz and Vice President Harris at the polls.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one vote counts,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a sacred duty to vote.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shirley said former President Donald Trump plans to steal from tribes and those on people on Social Security.<\/p>\n

\"Minnesota
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz made a stop in Window Rock, Arizona, on Saturday to speak to Navajo Nation voters at Veterans Memorial Park.Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Navajo
Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren takes the stage at a campaign rally on Saturday in Window Rock, Arizona.(Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

David Tsosie sang a song and led a tribal elder prayer for the candidates.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe really feel that they\u2019re special people, because they talk a lot about the issues that are really close,\u201d Tsosie said.<\/p>\n

Protection for the campaign headquarters throughout the state of Arizona was mentioned in his prayer.<\/p>\n

Johnathan Nez, former Navajo Nation president, spoke on the power of voting.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs Native Americans, our voices have long been marginalized, but now is the time for us to reclaim our power and make our presence felt,\u201d Nez said.<\/p>\n

Voting is not just a right, but it\u2019s a responsibility held by citizens fought for by the ancestors that came before, he said.<\/p>\n

No access to the polls, language barriers, and misinformation are all barriers Native voters face, Nez said.<\/p>\n

\"Interior
Interior Secretary Deb Haaland speaks at a Democratic campaign rally in Window Rock, Arizona. (Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"U.S.
U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly speaks at a Democratic campaign rally in Window Rock, Arizona. (Alx Lee\/Tri-City Record)<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Nez suggested arranging rides to the polls and sharing accurate information about the election and voting to family members.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy voting, you are on the front lines,\u201d he said. \u201cLet us honor our warriors who protected our freedoms and help expand democracy throughout the world by voting in this election.\u201d<\/p>\n

Deb Haaland, Secretary of the Interior, made an appearance to share the plans and interest in middle class America that Harris holds.<\/p>\n

Both candidates have been advocates for Native American communities in cultural preservation and economic growth, Haaland said.<\/p>\n

Haaland mentioned the tax relief that would expand the Child Tax Credit, including an additional $6,000 for families with a newborn child.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s make sure that once you have your plan to vote, you help someone else make theirs, your aunties, your uncles, your grandmas, your grandmas, your nieces and nephews and sons and daughters and children, everyone,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren gave an address about the apology U.S. President Joe Biden made days before and the change Walz has brought to tribes in Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Biden was the first American president to say, \u2018I apologize,\u2019\u201d Nygren said.<\/p>\n

\"A
A protester is escorted from the rally Saturday for the Democratic ticket for president in Windo Rock, Arizona.Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Minnesota
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the vice presidential candidate on Kamala Harris' presidential campaign, speaks to a crowd at the Navajo Nation's Veterans Memorial Park in Window Rock, Arizona.Brad Ryan\/Special to Tri-City Record<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Nygren spoke to the efforts led by Walz to preserve tribal communities and his visits to all 11 nations in Minnesota.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2021, Gov. Walz signed a bill codifying government to government relations with tribal consultation into law,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Nygren said he would be casting his vote for Harris and Walz.<\/p>\n

Ian Teller introduced Walz on stage as the governor walked on with a necklace gifted to him, waving to the crowd and pointing to Ts\u00e9gh\u00e1hoodz\u00e1n\u00ed, the Shiprock formation in the background.<\/p>\n

Walz thanked the nation for welcoming him and choosing to spend their time at the rally that day.<\/p>\n

He also give thanks to the veterans as he referenced the park where the rally was held.<\/p>\n

\u201cNative Americans have served this country in uniform in every major conflict for over 200 years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Walz started by saying that he and his running mate recognizes the promises made to Indigenous people.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will safeguard and strengthen the bonds between our nations and uphold our trust in treaty obligations,\u201d he said. \u201cThe highest law is to honor tribal sovereignty, promote tribal consultation and ensure tribal self-determination across this country.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Walz, more than 200 post-stewardship agreements were signed by Harris, meaning tribes would have authority over what happens to tribal land.<\/p>\n

The task force on the Missing and Murdered Indigenous People was included in the speech and the work that needs to be continued.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

If tribal nations are doing well, the country is doing well, Walz said.<\/p>\n

About 100 million Americans will see a tax cut, according to Walz.<\/p>\n

Walz also spoke about cutting prices for prescription drugs, saying the Harris administration would cap the price on insulin at $35.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that diabetes runs higher in Indian Country,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Health care for seniors was also mentioned and the need for reliable emergency medical technicians both on the reservation and in America.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got to have a plan \u2013 and what that plan is?,\u201d he said \u201cTo vote.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walz closed his speech with a call using the Harris slogan, shouting with the audience, \u2018When we vote, we win.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

care, military and tribal initiatives were major points in speech<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[1240,1222,155,799,28,1241],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-25162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-aztec","tag-bloomfield","tag-education","tag-farmington","tag-headlines","tag-kirtland"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25162"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25162\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78823,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25162\/revisions\/78823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25162"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=25162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}