The deadline for Congress to authorize the Cobell Settlement has been extended to October 15. The most recent attempt to pass the settlement on August 6 was blocked—yet again—by Republicans in the Senate.

One Senator in particular is hell-bent on preventing the settlement’s passage—Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), the vice chairman of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee.

The chairman of the committee, Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-North Dakota), asked the Senate to approve the settlement through a unanimous consent process. But Barrasso objected for the umpteenth time, saying changes needed to be made to the deal.

"My colleague from Wyoming, I think, wishes he were one of the negotiators. Nobody in Congress was a negotiator ... the question is whether we will meet our responsibility,” said Dorgan, according to the Associated Press.

The $3.2 billion settlement ended a 14-year class-action lawsuit brought against the U.S. Department of Interior by some 300,000 Native American land owners, who argued that the government failed to pay them $42 billion in lease revenue collected by the government over the past 120 years. After years of stalling, the government finally conceded and agreed to settle with the plaintiffs in December 2009.

December marked an important milestone for Native Americans across the country, yet the Cobell Settlement is useless without the congressional approval needed to enact the law and authorize implementation. The settlement has passed multiple times in the House, but the Senate continues to delay. The deadline for congressional authorization has been extended numerous times, but this may the last extension.

It’s time to get serious about passing this important legislation, but the abhorrent actions of one lawmaker threaten to dismantle the entire agreement.

Tell Senator Barrasso of Wyoming that his continued actions to block the passage of the Cobell Settlement are inexcusable in the face of more than a century of Native American injustice, and urge him to stop supporting the abuse of American Indians’ rights—it is shameful and intolerable.

After a century of injustice, a 14-year legal battle, and seven months of delays in Congress, how much longer will the plaintiffs have to wait for justice? We must act now to ensure approval of the Cobell Settlement before the October 15 deadline.

Sign the petition to Tell Senator Barrasso: Stop Blocking Crucial Legislation for Native American Rights and Approve of the Cobell Settlement Now!

Image Credit: cliff1066 (Flickr)