Scott Davis steps down from Interior Department, returns to North Dakota

“It was never my goal to be working in government, but sometimes that's where the Creator puts you, and you got to do your job,” Davis, a Standing Rock Sioux Tribe citizen with Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa heritage, told Buffalo’s Fire.

Davis is a familiar face to many in North Dakota, having served as executive director of the state’s Indian Affairs Commission from 2009 to 2021, where he worked with 25 tribal chairs and three governors, including Doug Burgum.

“In that time we became really close, good friends,” Davis said of Burgum. “I consider him a brother.”

Burgum’s political trajectory has elevated Davis’s as well. While Burgum’s presidential — and vice-presidential — aspirations weren’t realized, President Donald Trump nominated him to be the 55th U.S. Secretary of the Interior, a role he began in 2025.

“He asked me to join him on board,” said Davis. “And I was reluctant at the time because I was in the private sector and working for tribes, and doing well and happy, stable and content.”

But Davis added that his friend needed support and assistance in the “ASIA hallway,” his term for the location of the acting secretary of Indian Affairs’ offices. Davis served as acting assistant secretary for eight months, then deputy assistant secretary for four.

Davis said during that time he commuted every weekend between North Dakota and Washington D.C. There were plenty of 12-to-14 hour days. He met with 400 tribes, either in D.C. or in their communities, pushing for self-governance and energy development and cutting down on red tape for tribes.

He also tackled probate cases. He gave an example of the work his staff would do in the case of someone’s grandfather dying: “Does he have a will? Does he have what's going to happen to his land, his house, those things?” He said the federal government does this kind of work on behalf of tribes and tribal citizens, but estate work gets complicated for relatives with cases stretching back years. “I think there was about 45,000 cases that were backlogged, it's crazy.” Davis said a “pretty robust strike team” was developed to get those numbers down.

When Davis returns to North Dakota, he’ll resume work with his consulting and lobbying firm, primarily in the Bismarck-Mandan area. He is the CEO and founder of Tatanka Consulting Group, which has specialized — since October 2023 — in tribal relations on issues related to healthcare, education, natural resources and legal matters. According to its website, the firm also “partners with government agencies, associations, private corporations and special interest groups to navigate complex systems, challenges and initiatives.”

Davis will also focus on spending time with his family. He has two daughters in college, a stepson, grandkids and a seventh-grade son.

“I missed a lot of basketball games and a lot of his events,” said Davis. “It's really, really hard to do when you're gone every week, especially in those eight months as acting ASIA.”

Davis officially left his federal post on Thursday, April 2, announcing his departure on his LinkedIn account the following day.

He called it an honor “to serve our Country, Tribal Nations and our Relatives,” adding that he and Burgum had “an understanding that I would help him in the first year of his office” to get “the ASIA hallway set up and engaging Indian Country.” He added that his “good friend and brother” Billy Kirkland was confirmed as his successor and that “Indian Country is in good hands.”

Davis said for Native tribes and the Trump administration to work together, communication will be key going forward “with the tribes flexing their political muscle on the Hill.”

“We thank Scott Davis for his dedicated service to the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Indian Affairs,” a DOI spokesperson said in an email to Buffalo’s Fire. “Throughout his tenure, he played an important role in advancing the Department’s mission and supporting tribal communities. We are grateful for his contributions and wish him all the best in his next chapter.”

Other parties expressed gratitude for Davis’s work as well, including the National Congress of American Indians and the InterTribal Buffalo Council.

“Scott has been a strong and steady advocate for Tribal Nations and for the return of buffalo to our homelands,” the council said in a Facebook post. “He understands that buffalo are more than animals, they are relatives, and he supported Tribal-led efforts in a way that made a real and lasting difference. His work has helped move restoration forward for the InterTribal Buffalo Council and our member Tribes, strengthening both land and culture. We are grateful for his partnership, his respect, and his commitment to this work.”

Davis says partners in making things better for Native people — regardless of political party — should see themselves as being on the “tribal team.” And he’s ready to keep working on behalf of Indian Country.

“Make no doubt, every day when I put my suit jacket on or my tie, I'm always working on the behalf of tribes,” he said.