President Obama meets with tribal leaders. Discusses possibility of visiting Alaska.

Meeting with tribal leaders from across the country Thursday in Washington, D.C., President Obama heard calls from Alaska Natives for help combating suicide, coastal erosion and offshore drilling.

Acknowledging broken promises of the past, the president vowed to involve tribal governments in federal decision-making. Alaska Native leaders called the summit -- the first of its kind in 15 years -- a historic move by the White House as the president and several top aides spent the day talking with tribes.

"They actually apologized for the neglect we've received in the past from past administrations," said Sen. Albert Kookesh, D-Angoon, who attended the meeting as co-chairman of the Alaska Federation of Natives. "And they promised us in front of God and everybody else that they would be there for us to make sure that things work out a lot better for us."

If the administration follows through on their desire to REALLY work with Native Americans on some of the daunting problems facing those communities that would wonderful news. For too long the indigenous people of our country have been treated like second class citizens (if they are lucky) and ignored because they did not have the political clout to gain access.

So does President Obama get it?

"I get it," he told the crowd. "I'm on your side. I understand what it means to be an outsider."

Obama talked about the need to tackle climate change, particularly in Alaska, along with joblessness and crime in tribal communities.

"Few have been more marginalized and ignored by Washington for as long as Native Americans -- our first Americans," he said.

That sounds good but the President is a politician so I always take those kinds of statement with a grain of salt. However this one gives me more hope.

The president talked about unemployment -- as high as 80 percent on some reservations -- homes without access to safe water supplies, and high rates of sexual assault as examples.

"The shocking and contemptible fact that one in three Native American women will be raped in their lifetimes is an assault on our national conscience that we can no longer ignore," Obama said.

Those are much stronger words, and give me hope that Obama is serious about doing something substantial for the native community in Alaska, and the lower 48.

And I hope he takes us up on this offer as well.:

"If you ever decide you want to get away from it all, come see one of us," said Bill Martin, president of the Tlingit and Haida Tribes of Alaska.

"I often want to get away from it all," Obama replied. "So I'm very much looking forward to visiting."

Of course he DID quantify that statement.

“The only thing I do want to make sure you understand is that when I do visit Alaska, it’s going to be during the summer.

"So, just wanted to be clear about that.”

Smart man.

I wonder if the President could work in a visit to the local bloggers while he is here. After all we have been accused of working for him all along, so maybe it would nice to finally met the "boss". (No not Springsteen!)

By the way if you are in Alaska and just cannot wait until summer , the President will be making a refueling stop at Elmendorf Air Force Base next Wednesday.