Suspended leader visits Shiprock

Navajo President Joe Shirley Jr. traveled Friday to Shiprock to educate the community about the upcoming referendum vote.

[ShirleySupport]

Joe Shirley has helped create jobs for the NN; we should remember this as we read headlines from neighboring towns:
FARMINGTON — Waldenbooks in the Animas Valley Mall will close its doors in January 2010.
Mesa Air Group is discontinuing its pilot training program at San Juan College.
Farmington's City Government has done nothing for their economy, even worse they continue to SPEND SPEND SPEND on capital outlay projects which will leave them with nothing to do besides cutting City Employee jobs and raising Citizen's TAXES.
Two of their Cities leaders: Bill Standley and George Sharpe, being embedded with this SPEND then TAX policy, have decided not to bother with running for re-election.

[california dine]

Joe's the MAN. He the favorite tribal president. GOOD JOB, President Shirley and your associates.

[Dinelady]

He is just sailing like nothing; while unnessary investigation goes on. Someone is wasting time and money for no reason. I go for the reduction of council.

[Shirley supporter]

Joe Shirley has done a great job for our nation, in the years he's been if office he has brought jobs to our navajo nation and has been doing great for our dine people. Who ever decided to investigate him and his staff you are just waisting your time and money. Besides, reducing the council to 24, i think that would be a huge mistake for our navajo nation. It means with all the chapters on our reservation and communities the smallest communities will have to transfer to a bigger chapter with more community members, it would mean getting less help financially, and cutting off summer youth employment and competing for scholarships. People need to rethink about this reduction in council. Keep up the great leadership Mr. Joe Shirley.

[california dine]

It's great to hear good remark about our President Shirley. Way to go, keep up the good work Mr. Shirley. You are on top of the line getting the navajo nation in order. thank you to all who support Mr. Shirley.

[rodney]

Drugs and gangs are on the rise on the rez, Window Rock is just as ugly and unmanageable, bad roads, trash everywhere, the rez is looking run-down, very few jobs, fewer adn fewer police officers.

And MOST of the scchools on the rez have not made AYP!(I knwo Joe is not directly responsible for that but he did push for education reform) and so to all of Joes cheerleaders, how is Joe doing a good job? Just wondering where you have been for the past 7 years.

[Bahane]

In his first term, President Shirley fulfilled a campaign goal to focus and shake off the federally imposed land freeze in western Navajo where infrastructure as well as building a home was banned for 40 years. A knowledgeable Navajo AG (a Shirley appointee) and Brown & Bain lawyer Terry Fenzl helped pilot the Intergovernmental Compact which put an end to the ban on construction in the disputed area imposed in 1966 by the U.S. It was an exhausting Navajo teamwork effort (community members, chapter officials, CDs, Navajo Hopi Land Commission,) which included a 9th Circuit Court appointed federal mediator who steered and processed the negotiation between the Navajo and Hopi Nations. People that say that President Shirley did not accomplish anything are in denial or just plain ignorant.

[for local]

what happened to his campaign promises that he would build nursing homes on the reservation and bring our elders back to the nation? he has yet to achieve any. also, a NEW councilman was the one who thought up the council reduction to 24 and he shared this idea with the PREZ. That's what he's running with. This man lets others think and he's just their puppet. the tribe has lost more money under his administration. O yeah! what about that slush fund? do you Shirley supporters all support that? he's a wasteful person...

[The Watcher]

I have an idea, why don't we get rid of this lame-ass govt that our elders created and then actually build one that actually WORKS for us and doesn't put money into our leader's pockets...