Common sense would lead one to see that the notion of sovereignty carries with it responsibility, & certainly not dependence or the perpetual paternalism that "tribes" in the USA have enjoyed & demanded for over 100 years.

Call 'em governments if you wish, the native cultures & systems that existed prior to European discovery resisted the newcomers - but failed - primarily due to cultural & technological default. 

That was long since done, yet like no other place in the world, the vanquished have been further damaged by the long standing preferential treatment given them by the dominant government.

Look at alcoholism, drug dependence, family violence & other indicators.  These severe social ills plague members of "tribes" on a statistically much higher level than the population at large.

Special rights & privileges, deferential "sovereignty", etc. have not resulted in good results for members of tribes in the US. Some individuals benefited, but most have been damaged.