Jessie wants to runaway from her partnership with her cousin Cedric claiming she didn’t know what he was doing. She can’t escape the consequences of her actions.
At Reel Wamps, we’re grateful for existing. We’re sure many Tribal members feel the same way. It’s been a tough journey, but the last 12 years have been brutal. It was like Her Imperial Majesty Je$$ie Baird was clueless about our painful experience… one where she played a major role. She recently wrote this insulting letter to the Tribe about our status and future course. She took no responsibility for our very bad state of affairs. She was in lock step with Cedric Cromwell the whole time….blocking, tackling and engaging in 8 years of coverup.
When Je$$ie did show up, she made it her business to obfuscate and knock people off the zoom calls to keep Cedric’s activity a secret. She was constantly challenging the government’s authority to investigate. Instead of understanding that the scrutiny into every damned aspect of tribal service and expenditures was an indictment in itself….. she was trying to subvert it. Like her compadre Cedric, accountability is not a strong suit. As a matter of fact, they mirrored Donald Trump, incompetent, disingenuous, narcissistic, greedy and lacking compassion for people.
Worst of all, Je$$ie is talking about what she will or will not do. With Cedric gone, she will have to become chairman, provided the tribal court confirms his removal, which is likely. So at first she said she didn’t want to be chairman. So resign then, she was told. She’s totally irresponsible in her current role, she never shows up for meetings accept to protect Cedric. But worst of all, she didn’t want to resign because she did not want Aaron Tobey to become the interim chairman. That’s not her decision. It goes to the heart of the Mashpee 5 MO, they do not follow Tribal law. Just do whatever they want….
The most outrageous lie in the Je$$ie letter was her pronouncement that our financial affairs were in order.
Je$$ie proclaims her love for the Tribe and that she works hard for us. She’s so absurd. Like we don’t know. She’s so ridiculous, she tried to remove her aunt, Martha White from the roll because she was too dark skinned. Everyone loves Martha and can’t stand her. Keep the countdown goin‘.
Oh, wait a minute. So are we supposed to believe that knowing we haven’t seen or voted on a budget in 2 going on three years means our finances are in order? And the Treasurer goes on sick leave for 2 1/2 months just prior to Cedric’s arrest? Worst of all Jessie keeps doing a countdown to her departure. A countdown to all tribal members who question her. No accountability. Just a lecture in a tribal letter. She has never done a damned thing that doesn’t benefit her personally.
And she has the nerve to talk about working with the Biden administration? So, you don’t think they know about you, Cedric and the others? With the first time public inclusion of Native American tribal nations in the public discourse….they know about us and the autocratic tribal leadership of which she is a significant member. They know about the disappearance of $600 million leaving the Mashpee Wampanoag all but destitute (if it weren’t for the grants). And you have to imagine that there’s more coming and more scrutiny of the consultants and attorneys who worked for Cedric. Ya that’s what happens. Time to shed a lot of people.
WHAT’S NEXT?
We all need to do our homework. We need to get answers. We have not done that. That includes Reel Wamps because you can never ask enough questions. Knowledge is a powerful weapon and we need that this round. We need leaders who have a plan to move us forward. Many of us know people who would like to serve on the council but decided not to because they did not want to be associated with Cedric or his regime. Now is the time to come forward to reaffirm our ability to handle our own business.
SUSPICION
Cedric’s administration answered to no one….until the feds stepped in. The lies and lack of transparency created suspicion at every turn, especially where money was concerned. So hazardous duty pay was eyed warily.
We have been critical of officers in particular who have been getting hazardous duty pay during COVID. The officers got the money and rarely showed up in the building, including Cedric. A lot of other staff are on the list and quite frankly, we don’t know what the hell some of them do to warrant the extra pay. Several getting upwards of nearly $40k over 6 months.
Tribal members are quick to tout Nelson’s work ethic and tell stories of how he’s actually helped them. And they say if the lights are on at the Council, he’s in there working.
Nelson Andrews, Jr is on that list too, the difference is that we know what he does….a boatload. Andrews is a quiet unassuming guy who is well liked. But his biggest assets are his knowledge and experience. Not only has he expanded his department of Emergency Management to an efficient and viable agency, he has acquired nearly a half a billion dollars in equipment and manages a budget of $2.5 million. He’s a Tribal member who’s professional know how is frequently sought out by the federal government. A former FEMA officer, he played a major role in designing the road map for the for tribal nations to receive COVID emergency revenues and other public assistance funding. Because of his expertise, and proposal, our Tribe was the second in the nation to receive COVID funding. In Indian Country, they also look to Andrews. He has provided expert testimony on all this and more for the National Council of American Indians most recently and is the co-chair of the United South & Eastern Tribes Homeland Security & Emergency Services Committee.
Now as our interim tribal administrator, he is responsible for oversight and management of the Tribe’s 23
No chest pounding with Nelson Andrews. He’s one of those people who actually loves doing his job. Lucky for us.
departments in addition to his own. That also means filing the federal government reports necessary to keep us in good standing. The guys is doing 3 major jobs, two of them are lifesaving for Tribal members. Furthermore, we will need to get the next round of CARES funding that’s on the horizon. Who better to do it than the guy who designed the process and guidelines? And Native Americans will likely be among the first ethnic groups to get the vaccine because of all our preexisting conditions And the Biden administration is paying close attention to Native America so we should be on the front line with a plan for self determination and sustainability.
It’s been so long since we’ve had good tribal government service, frankly we though we would talk about it for those who didn’t know that we have a strong positive element in our Tribe. Their success is our success going forward. They will provide the course correction we need during this sad time.
Salvaging the Tribe is the challenge. We need real leaders with ideas. plans for renewal and understand that they work for us. We need leaders who will reverse the image that has been our brand for 12 years.
And we’re going to talk about other tribal members who are working for us whether they’re in the government or the tribal community. It’s all about looking forward now. Next time.
