U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth says he is taking a “sledgehammer” to a federal program that many tribes and tribal businesses rely on. He is referring to the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program that extends contract priorities to disadvantaged business owners. Hegseth uses words like “fraud” and “scheme” to describe what he says is an outdated diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiative. His is part of an overall scrutiny of the program by the federal government. Hundreds of Native small businesses have accessed the program over the past 60 years, and some Alaska Native corporations have multi-million dollar contracts.

GUESTS

Jon Panamaroff (Native Village of Afognak), co-chair of the Native American Contractors Association and CEO of Command Holdings

Kevin Allis (Forest County Potawatomi), founder and president of Thunderbird Strategic and former CEO of the National Congress of American Indians

Nick Grube, investigative reporter at Honolulu Civil Beat