Senator from montana. Following election to the Montana Senate in 1998 senator tester rose to minority whip and minority leader before becoming president of the state senate in 2005. He was elected to the u. S. Senate in 2006 and again in 2012. Senator tester is a chairman of the Indian Affairs committee and also serves on the veterans affair, homeland security, Indian Affairs, banking, and appropriations committees and in the u. S. Senate he is an outspoken voice for rural american and advocate for small businesses. Hes a champion of American Indian nations pushing for improvements in education, health care and housing, and working to alleviate poverty. Please join me in welcoming the on nobble jon tester, the United States senator. Well, thank you, tim, for that kind introduction. Thank you for the warm welcome. It is great to be here today to celebrate the opening of the nations to nation exhibit. This exhibit is a tangible reminder of the federal governments relationship with sovereign tribal nations of this country. Its also a reminder of the moral and legal obligations that the United States has to honor and uphold our treaties with indian countries. The United States has 566 recognized tribes as sovereign entities with their own governments and their own laws. Sovereign is a key word, a treaty is formal, written agreements between sovereign states. And the constitution clearly states that a treaty is a supreme law of the land. The documents shown in this exhibit may be on parchment or on hide and