Huffman Statement on Trump Handing Sacred Apache Land to Foreign Mining Giants in $150 Billion Giveaway

Washington, D.C. – Today, Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) issued the following statement after President Trump transferred Oak Flat, a National Historic Site sacred to multiple Apache tribes, to multinational mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP:

“Foreign mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP got exactly what they paid for with this administration. President Trump handed them a sacred Apache site to destroy, greenlighted a deal that sends American copper to China, and the American people won’t see a single cent in royalties because our mining laws don’t require it.

“Apache families who have held sacred ceremonies at Oak Flat since time immemorial lost these sacred lands today. Their loss is foreign shareholders’ gain. The publicly owned copper just given to Resolution Copper could be worth more than $150 billion, based on the Forest Service's own appraisal of the copper deposit.

“This is a human rights violation, an environmental disaster in the making, and a multibillion-dollar giveaway to foreign mining companies.

“Congress needs to reform our antiquated mining laws now. Americans deserve a better deal than this. Tribes must have a seat at the table over the fate of their sacred lands. The American people have had enough of watching Trump and Republicans give away billions of dollars’ worth of our nation’s natural resources to foreign mining companies for free.”

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