100 days on Capitol Hill
It's been a little more than 100 days since the five Indigenous members were sworn into the 117th Congress. A lot has happened since then.
In January, millions watched as a mob violently charged the U.S. Capitol during the insurrection. Two weeks later, President Joe Biden became the nation's 46th president. He began a series of presidential actions hours after his inauguration to honor the nation's relationship to tribal nations. Then in February members of Congress voted to impeach former President Donald Trump a second time.
Simultaneously, key breakthroughs took place on the coronavirus front. The first vaccine doses began being administered on Jan. 4 to healthcare and other essential workers after more than 300,000 Americans died from the virus.
Indian Country and nation reached a notable milestone when Interior Secretary Deb Haaland took office in March, the first Native American to lead a Cabinet agency.
The five Indigenous voting members of Congress all serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, and a majority come from the Republican party. Reps. Tom Cole, Markwayne Mullin, Sharice Davids, Yvette Herrell and Kai Kahele have worked through the national and state hurdles of the last few months.
On major pieces of legislation like the American Rescue Plan, the Indigenous members of Congress voted along party lines, with the Republicans opposing the legislation and the Democrats supporting it.
On other bills affecting Indian Country, many Indigenous Congress members have crossed party lines to advocate for tribal communities.
Here's a recap of the lawmakers' past few months, organized by seniority:
Rep. Sharice Davids of Kansas
Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kansas, fought for and won a second term in the state's 3rd district.
Davids, Ho-Chunk, met with White House senior staff to discuss policy priorities in the American Jobs plan in April. She says a key focus has been responding to the health and economic crisis made by COVID-19.
"That's why I voted to pass the American Rescue Plan, which includes the largest infusion of resources in history to Native communities, who we know have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic," Davids said. "I will continue working to ensure tribal communities have the support they need to not only recover from COVID-19, but to build back better than before. I look forward to amplifying the voices of Indian Country and advancing priorities at the federal level."
In March, Davids met with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House to discuss transportation and infrastructure needs.
In the early months of her second term, she focused on introducing four bills and supporting 61 others since taking office. Some of those bills have passed the house and are being heard in the Senate, including the Paycheck Fairness Act, a bill aiming to close the wage gap. She also supported the same bill as Cole and Mullin to honor the Capitol police officers.
Davids co-chairs the Native American caucus with Cole. She also serves on four committees: transportation and infrastructure, small business, joint economic and house steering and policy committees. She also sits on six subcommittees and 18 caucuses.