Title: Tribal Sovereignty: History and the Law - Native American Caucus of the California Democratic Party
Headings: 
Constitutional Law and Legal Precedent
Sovereignty as a Retained Right
Tribes and the Federal Government
The Cornerstones of Tribal Self-Government

Content: Tribal governments today are in a transition that began with independence, progressed through a long, difficult period of survival, and are now moving again toward self-determination and control. California tribal governments continue their progress protecting the legacy of sovereignty and providing for the future self-sufficiency of their people. Constitutional Law and Legal Precedent
Over the last two centuries, a unique relationship has been maintained between Indian tribes and the federal government. This relationship was defined in an 1832 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. In Worcester v. Georgia, the court ruled that Indian tribes are “distinct political communities, retaining their original rights as the undisputed possessors of the soil from time immemorial…the very term nation, so generally applied to them, means a people distinct from others, having territorial boundaries, within which their authority is exclusive, and having a right to all the lands within those boundaries, which is not only acknowledged but guaranteed by the United States.” In fact, the U.S. Constitution specifically recognizes Indian tribes as distinct governments, along with foreign nations and the several states. Since the early 1800’s, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld the principle that tribes did not lose their sovereign powers by becoming subject to the power of the federal government. Sovereignty as a Retained Right
Long before there was a United States of America, tribes governed themselves, provided for their people, and negotiated treaties with other nations such as England, France, and Spain. When tribes signed treaties with the U.S., they were guaranteed the right to continue governing themselves. This means that their sovereign rights are retained, not granted.