Kilili upbeat about NMI-Congress relations

Delegate-elect Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan is upbeat about the Commonwealth’s relationship with U.S. Congress after meeting with Rep. George Miller, a long-time advocate of labor and immigration changes in the Northern Marianas.

Sablan, who is on his first trip to Washington, D.C. since his historic election as the Commonwealth’s first ever delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, said his meeting with Miller “represents the beginning of a new era of possibilities.”

“After our meeting with Chairman George Miller and his staff, Floor Leader Joseph Camacho and I can report to the people of the CNMI that we are hopeful and confident about forging a new relationship with the Congress and the CNMI,” Sablan said in a statement yesterday.

The statement adds, “Congressman Miller is a leading advocate on many of the issues that are of importance to the people of the CNMI—education, labor, the economy, and the environment. Our meeting today will be the first of many over the next two years but already I believe we have established a level of goodwill and an agreement to cooperate and work together in a way that the people of the CNMI will be proud of.”

Miller holds a number of important positions in Congress. He is a member of the Democratic Leadership, serving as chairman of the House Democratic Policy Committee. He is also chairman of the Education and Labor Committee, a panel he has served on since first coming to Congress and where he served as the senior Democrat since 2001. Miller also sits on the House Natural Resources Committee, one of Congress’ primary committees overseeing the environment, energy and public lands. He was chairman of that Committee from 1991 to 1994 and the senior Democrat until 2000.

In related news, Guam Delegate Madeleine Z. Bordallo yesterday offered her congratulations to Sablan, who beat seven-year Washington Resident Rep. Pete A. Tenorio by 357 votes on Nov. 4.

“The election of the first Delegate from the CNMI to the U.S. House of Representatives is an important event for the people of the CNMI and our nation,” Bordallo said in a statement. “I congratulate Delegate-elect Sablan and the people of the CNMI on this occasion, and I look forward to working with him when the 111th Congress is sworn in next year.”

Sablan will be officially sworn into office on Jan. 6, 2009, when the House of Representatives convenes to begin the 111th Congress.

While in D.C., Sablan will attend the official orientation session for newly elected members of Congress. He will also meet with other ranking Democrats in Congress and visit with his counterparts from the other Pacific islands.

Floor Leader Camacho, one of the local Republicans who supported Sablan in his independent bid for delegate, is accompanying Sablan in his trip to the nation’s capital.

In his statement, Sablan praised Camacho for “putting the needs of the people above political parties.” He added, “Floor Leader Camacho’s vision of a bright and prosperous CNMI is a sign of true leadership and appreciation for the needs of the CNMI people,” he said.