In his meeting with American Indian and Alaska Native tribal leaders today at the White House, President Clinton spoke of respecting the values, religions, identities, and sovereignty of Native Americans and tribal governments. The President stressed that the federal government must “dramatically improve” its relationship with the tribes and become full partners with the tribal nations. The President signed a government directive requiring every executive department and agency of government to take two steps: (1) remove all barriers that prevent them from working directly with tribal governments and (2) make certain that if they take action affecting tribal trust resources, they consult with tribal governments prior to that decision.