The Cherokee Nation is a tribal government, continuing in full force and effect, but restricted according to law. In other words, the 1839 Constitution, which had created the Cherokee Nation was recognized and continued. The 1898 Curtis Act was recognized as controlling and diminishing the sovereign authority of the tribe by abolishing its courts. The citizenship of the Cherokee Nation was "frozen" by Congress when it closed the Dawes Rolls, providing that the individuals born to Dawes enrollees were merely descendants, but not citizens. The only citizens of the Cherokee Nation are those persons listed upon the Dawes Commission Rolls, and their numbers are few, as those yet living would be 100 years old or older.

In 1934, Congress passed the Indian Reorganization Act, but exempted Oklahoma from its provisions. In 1936, Congress corrected itself and passed the Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act, which provided for a "new day" by which tribes could reorganize their governments and citizenship any way they wanted. However, they must permit all citizens and their voting age descendants a vote, even if it would remove them from the tribe. To date, the Cherokee Nation has not organized under that act and is not rehabilitated by its provisions. The Cherokee Nation remains disabled by the Curtis Act and only the right to popularly select the principal chief has been restored.

In 1970, Congress passed the Principal Chiefs Act, which provided in just a few words, that the Cherokee people shall have the authority to popularly select their principal chief. This act further provided that the Principal Chief shall "promulgate rules" to carry into effect the election. Nowhere in federal law does it provide for the rehabilitation of the Cherokee Nation by removing the disabilities imposed by the Curtis Act and the 1906 Five Tribes Act, except for holding elections for chief.

In 1975, Principal Chief Ross O. Swimmer brings forth what he describes as a "new constitution" to replace the constitution of 1839. He claims that the "inherent sovereignty" of the Cherokee Nation gave him that right. This contention was false and continues to be false. The inherent sovereignty of the Cherokee Nation was already delegated and could not be diverted for his own use. The Cherokee people had delegated their inherent sovereignty to the Cherokee government by and through the 1839 Constitution. The only way for inherent sovereignty to be used differently would be for the Cherokee people to withdraw their support of the 1839 constitution by and through its provisions for amendment or by a constitutional convention under the terms set by Cherokee law. None of this happened.

The inherent sovereignty remained and remains "occupied and in use" by the 1839 Constitution. The Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma, a pretender and usurper of the Cherokee people's inherent authority, is a corporation created by the Principal Chief to aid him in governing. There have been no actions taken by the Cherokee people, or the U.S. Congress, which could provide for the reorganization of the Cherokee Nation under a new constitution. Such an action would require federal legislation superceding the 1906 Five Tribes Act. The OIWA could provide the authority for reorganizing the Cherokee Nation, but the Cherokee people have chosen not to take advantage of the rehabilitating provisions of that piece of legislation.

The Cherokee Nation remains disabled and unable to function fully as the government of the Cherokee people, while the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma pretends to be that government. The passage of time and the CNO acting in the stead of the Cherokee Nation have convinced most Cherokees that it is the Cherokee Nation. However, the passage of time and illegal actions cannot legitimize the CNO. That which was illegitimate from its beginning cannot be made legitimate by the passage of time.

Can the Cherokee people defy the U.S. Congress and reorganize and rehabilitate their government without organizing under the OIWA? The answer is yes. We, the Cherokee people do not need the permission of Congress to reorganize our government. Will Congress recognize such reorganization? Who knows? It’s risky, but definitely worth the effort because our inherent sovereignty is at stake. Did the Cherokee people reorganize and rehabilitate their government by adopting the 1975 and the 1999 Constitutions? No. Those documents were conceived in deceit and did not originate from the original inherent sovereignty of the Cherokee people as delegated to the government by and through the 1839 Constitution.