Leafaina “Ina” Tavai
WASHINGTON, D.C. (Office of the American Samoa Congressional Delegate) — U.S. Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata’s Chief of Staff Leafaina “Ina” Tavai represented her in attending the first White House Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander or NHPI Convening, Friday, Sept. 6, at the White House’s historic Eisenhower Executive Office Building.
Tavai, a retired U.S. Army colonel, has led Aumua Amata’s staff since day one of her entire time in Congress, and is notably American Samoa’s first ever graduate of a U.S. service academy — the Military Academy at West Point.
Speakers at the event included Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell, CNMI Gov. Arnold Palacios, former U.S. Congressman Robert Underwood of Guam and several others in NHPI leadership panels, and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai.
“I appreciate the invite, and I’m pleased with this focus on Pacific Islanders, as I’ve worked on these issues for years even before I served in Congress,” said Aumua Amata. “The territories and Pacific Islands achieve the most when we work together in a bipartisan way, bringing in all the governors and U.S. representatives.”
Aumua Amata has twice served prior administrations on their White House advisory boards for Asian and Pacific Islander Americans. During this White House event, Amata was en route from American Samoa, where she had spoken during the week to the Office of Disaster Assistance and Petroleum Management’s Disaster Resilience Summit and other activities in American Samoa. She has upcoming White House events on her schedule this month, including the 30th anniversary of the historic Violence Against Women Act.
The convening was the first with more planned for Pacific Islander leaders from across the country to engage with the administration in conjunction with the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders.
“It was an honor to be there on behalf of Congresswoman Amata and attest that it was a good discussion on Pacific Island issues that can lead to consensus for future efforts,” said Chief of Staff Tavai.
