One of the many good things about Native American Moot Court

I previously posted here about the school's Native American Moot Court team. Over the years, they have shown to be a strongly competitive and successful team.

Yesterday, I read on indianz.com that the author of last year's moot court problem, Professor Kevin Gover, is reportedly on the short list of candidates for the position of Secretary of the Interior under the Obama administration. Kevin Gover is a former professor of law at Arizona State University and since December of last year has been the current director of the Smithsonian Institute's National Museum of the American Indian.


Politico.com also has an article about Gover as potential Secretary of the Interior as well. Politico emphasizes that a number of "environmental groups are pushing Gover for the post." In pushing for this, politico.com explains, "A source close to the President-elect Barack Obama’s transition says several environmental groups have contacted environmental transition head Carol Browner, urging her to consider Gover for the top Interior Department post."

Previously there were three top candidates being considered. Gover is one out of two names now supposedly being considered.

Politico.com points out however, that "Traditionally, the interior secretary has been a Westerner." I'm not sure how much of a role tradition is playing in President-elect Obama's decision for cabinet members. Already, Barack Obama is being recognized for his diverse choices in choosing his cabinet.

Members of last year's moot court team were surprised to find out today that the author of the problem they worked hard on last year might be considered for the position of Secretary of the Interior. Last year, the team competed at Arizona State University and demonstrated their strong grasp of the issues of the problem and their ability to parry questions from competition judges. They also showed their innovative-ness in developing arguments that could not were not refuted at the competition.