Greg Bigman — Interview Q&A
≈ 8 min read · or listen, or skim the bold lines
B · From the record Summaries are drawn from Cal Nez’s interview. Quotations are not published until checked against the recording. How we verify →
Answer summaries in the site’s words, drawn from the recorded Cal Nez interview (Politics on the Navajo Nation, 2026) — not quotations and not the candidate’s own wording. Their exact words are in the video, linked from their profile.
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Culture, Language & Leadership
Cal asked: How important is Navajo language and culture, and how would you bring it into governance?
Bigman called language important but not the only thing — understanding the culture and connecting with people, including on a spiritual level, is what drives real leadership. He pointed to the Diné thinking-and-planning model (thought first, then word and action) as a governance framework that parallels the judicial branch.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
Government-minded vs. Entrepreneurial
Cal asked: Are you government-minded or entrepreneurial?
Bigman placed himself more on the entrepreneurial side — a biochemist with finance and pharmaceutical experience — valuing an independent mindset and disciplined risk management, while stressing that leadership in any sector is fundamentally about managing people, building teams, and communicating.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
Transparency & the Branch Conflict
Cal asked: Why does the president-council relationship break down, and what would you do?
Bigman likened the executive-legislative fight to parents fighting while the children — the public — are neglected, and said the core problem is that things are hidden from the public. He would push a transparency / full-disclosure act, citing his own recall experience at the elections office where policies were produced only when convenient.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
Title 2 & the Balance of Power
Cal asked: Are you familiar with Title 2 — is the government balanced?
Bigman explained Title 2 lays out the executive and legislative functions (the judicial branch sits outside it), and that while the code makes the Council the governing body, in practice the executive controls a large funding base through the Attorney General and litigation funds — so whether power is balanced depends on the circumstance, not just the code.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
638, Healthcare Financing & IMCE
Cal asked: What would you actually do about 638 and Indian Health Service (IHS)?
Bigman noted roughly $7 billion in health-care funds flow through Navajo and that care isn't guaranteed off-reservation in the treaty. He would make tribal insurance more accessible and usable by Navajo members, and pointed to the Indian Managed Care Entity (IMCE) concept as a way to coordinate care and ensure funds are spent against federal requirements.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
Section 17 Enterprises & “Our Money”
Cal asked: Do you agree with Section 17 for the enterprises, and what about oil and gas?
Bigman supports Section 17 federal corporations when properly structured — the danger is loading the board with government actors, which makes enterprises political instead of business-like. He stressed that however enterprises are structured, they were started with the people's money, so accountability follows the dollars (citing grants like the ZenniHome example with no accountability).
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
Small Business: Navajo Business Opportunity Act (NBOA), RBDOs & Title 26
Cal asked: What is your view of the NBOA, the RBDOs, and chapter autonomy?
Bigman said the NBOA applies only to Navajo entities (not private firms) and doesn't help sole proprietors, and that other tribes use an outside procurement body. He criticized the Regional Business Development Offices for becoming paperwork help rather than producing real businesses, and praised Title 26 for giving chapters autonomy in principle while everything still funnels slowly through Window Rock.
Not sure how to weigh this answer? The five lenses, in brief ▾
- Transparency & accountability: who is responsible, and how would progress be measured and verified?
- Root cause: does this address the underlying problem, or only the symptom?
- Culture — K’é / Hózhǫ: does it strengthen kinship, restore balance, honor future generations?
- Collaboration: who would need to work together — and does the answer name them?
- Prevention vs. damage control: does it prevent harm, or only respond after it?
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