Interior Secretary Ken Salazar welcomed first lady Michelle Obama to the Interior Department on Feb. 9, hailing her as “a rock for the future of the nation.” This is the third visit she has made to a federal department since President Obama’s inauguration. The ceremony to welcome her, rooted in Interior’s responsibilities to Native Americans, featured Indian drum rolls and a presentation of a shawl marking her achievements.

Sharing the stage with some of the department’s longest-serving employees, Obama and Salazar thanked them for their dedication and thanked all Interior employees for their service. They also reaffirmed the president's commitment to investing in conservation to help put people back to work, as well as his commitment to respecting sovereign Indian nations.

“At a time when so many Americans are out of work, sound energy and environmental policies are going to create thousands of jobs through the economic recovery and investment plan,” Obama told a capacity crowd of employees.

“You are at the center of one of this administration’s highest priorities: securing America’s energy future, protecting our natural environment and using the natural resources as responsibly as we can,” she said.  “It is not only vital for the survival of our planet as we work to combat climate change but also incredibly important to strengthen our economy and the well being of our families.”

In recognition of her accomplishments, the Black Bear Singers, a traditional drum group, performed "The Honor Song” for Obama.  The Black Bear Singers is an inter-tribal group representing American Indians who live and work in the Washington, D.C., area.

Obama accepted a Native American shawl from Nedra Darling, director of public affairs for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. The shawl, a creation of BIA curator Marian Hansson, features an appliqué horse pattern — a mark of respect to honor women of high achievements and distinction. Darling is a member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation; Hansson, the Kiowa Nation.

While thanking employees for the honors, Obama reiterated the president’s commitment to appoint an American Indian policy adviser on his senior White House staff.

In thanking the Obama for her visit, Salazar said he’d first met Barack and Michelle Obama in 2004, when he and Mr. Obama were both freshmen senators. Since that time, he said, the couple has exhibited the “calm, coolness, confidence and resolve that really will bring about the change that America and the world need so much.”

Related Links:

First Lady Michelle Obama’s Remarks: http://www.doi.gov/secretary/speeches/020909_speech_Mobama.html

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s Remarks: http://www.doi.gov/secretary/speeches/020909_speech.html

Audio of First Lady’s Remarks: http://www.doi.gov/news/audio/podcasts/index.html