Tribal leaders in Montana are urging Republican US Senate candidate Tim Sheehy to apologize over remarks he made to supporters about Native Americans being "drunk at 8am" and throwing beer cans at him on the Crow Reservation. Audio recordings of Sheehy's racial comments were obtained and published by Char-Koosta News, the official publication of the Flathead Indian Reservation. A Sheehy campaign spokesperson did not dispute the authenticity of the recordings, which the tribal newspaper said came from fundraising events held in Montana last November.
Sheehy is heard commenting in one of the recordings that his ranching partner is a member of the Crow Tribe with whom Sheehy ropes and brands cattle on the tribe's southeastern Montana reservation, the AP reports. "Great way to bond with all the Indians, to be out there while they're drunk at 8am," Sheehy says. In another recording, he describes riding a horse in the parade at Crow Fair, an annual gathering on the reservation that includes powwows, a rodeo, and other events. "If you know a tough crowd, you want to go to the Crow res," Sheehy says. "They let you know whether they like you or not—there's Coors Light cans flying by your head riding by."
The Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council, which represents 11 tribes and First Nations in the western US and Canada, said Sheehy's comments perpetuated stereotypes about Native Americans. Council Chairman Bryce Kirk asked Sheehy to formally apologize in a Tuesday letter to the campaign obtained by the AP. "You ask for our votes and then you go to your fundraiser, ironically with alcohol flowing ... behind closed doors, and you insult us with a stereotype that only seeks to severely diminish and dishonor our people," Kirk wrote. "The Crow people are not your punchline. Native Americans are not your punchline."
- Sheehy is challenging three-term incumbent Democrat Sen. Jon Tester in one of the most closely-watched congressional races in the nation. A Republican victory could help decide control of the closely divided Senate. Montana has seven Indian reservations and almost 70,000 Native Americans, representing about 7% of its total population.
- Calvin Lime, who lives on the Blackfeet reservation, tells the New York Times that the remarks are a "slap in the face"—even more so because the Crow Tribe is pro-Donald Trump, who endorsed Sheehy. "For them to bring him there, work with him, they're happy, they're promoting him, but behind closed doors they're the drunken Indian," he says. "Behind closed doors, you're actually getting looked at as a lesser-than."
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