Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Deval Patrick’s gambling addiction

By

Cross-posted from Media Nation.

What on earth is Gov. Deval Patrick doing? As I and many other casino opponents have pointed out repeatedly, the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe cannot open a full-fledged casino in Middleborough – or anywhere else – unless the state Legislature legalizes casino gambling.

Yet WBZ-TV (Channel 4) reports that Patrick is negotiating with the tribe in an attempt to strike a deal that will bring a casino to Middleborough. Unfortunately, casino opponents lost a bit of leverage last week, as federal officials backed away (here and here) from a proposal to crack down on video bingo. The Mashpee would be able to build a bingo hall regardless of whether casino gambling is legal in Massachusetts.

But considerable obstacles remain. The tribe’s Middleborough application could well be rejected by the U.S. Department of Interior, as it seeks to allow a casino to be built on newly acquired property rather than traditional tribal land. Moreover, the process followed by Middleborough town officials was a disgrace (see this, this and this). Casino opponents could no doubt keep this tied up in court for years if they have the resources. It’s a shame they have to fight the governor, too.

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  1. If the tribe sticks to Class II (i.e. bingo slots), the state can’t stop it, so why not try to get a piece of the pie.  And this statement from the WBZ article:

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    “We are prepared to negotiate within the parameters we have under existing law,” said Massachusetts Governor Patrick on Monday.

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    p>doesn’t sound to me like Class III is on the table at this point, and in any event, the Governor obviously cannot unilaterally bring Class III gaming to the state.  So I read the article’s reference to a “full scale casino” as perhaps not entirely clear on the parameters of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.  Do you interpret it differently?

    • My understanding of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act is that as long as a form of gambling is legal in the state, then the Indians can open a casino offering it.  Table games are legal for charity in Massachusetts.  

      • From the IGRA:

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        The term “class II gaming” means – …

        (ii) card games that –

        (I) are explicitly authorized by the laws of the State, or

        (II) are not explicitly prohibited by the laws of the State and are played at any location in the State, but only if such card games are played in conformity with those laws and regulations (if any) of the State regarding hours or periods of operation of such card games or limitations on wagers or pot sizes in such card games.

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        p>I think (but am not sure and am happy to be corrected) that the emphasized limitation would prevent a casino from running casino-style table games in any recognizable form.

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        p>Also, note that

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        (B) The term “class II gaming” does not include

        (i) any banking card games, including baccarat, chemin de fer, or blackjack (21)

      • Any type of class 3, legal or not, requires a compact with the state.

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        p>There is significant legal doubt that a state can be compelled to enter into a class 3 compact if it does not wish to.  No compact, no class 3.   No class 3, no ROI, no casino.

        • Bumpkin: Along the lines you’re suggesting, I predict Patrick will end up telling us that we’ll get diddly if we allow the Mashpee merely a Class 2 license, but that gold doubloons will rain down upon us from heaven if only the Legislature will approve Class 3.

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          p>Which is why I suspect Patrick’s negotiations with the Mashpee are being held with the proverbial “all issues on the table.” And then the pressure begins again.

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          p>Look out, Sal!

          • is that the negotiations concern the tribe’s agreeing to cut the state in for a share of the profits from a class II facility (even though they’re not legally required to do so) in exchange for the administration dropping or softening its opposition to taking the land into trust, which of course is a prerequisite for the tribe to be able to do anything at all.  It’s quite possible that Class III is not on the table (so to speak).

            • Here’s your answer, David, from today’s Cape Cod Times:

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              p>”The Mashpee tribe is still aiming for a Class III facility in Middleboro, where an environmental review is ongoing for the tribe’s land-into-trust application, tribal council spokesman Scott Ferson said yesterday.

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              p>”Tribal Council Chairman Shawn Hendricks ‘has always felt confidently, based on the conversations (he’s) had with folks at the state, that the tribe will ask and will be able to negotiate a Class III facility,’ Ferson said.

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              p>”Gov. Deval Patrick spent the fall and winter pushing a bill for commercial casinos that would have effectively legalized full-scale gambling, which showed his willingness to accept a destination resort, Ferson said.

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              p>”Patrick offered the tribe preference on a commercial casino license if it chose to forgo the Indian casino route, but the bill was overwhelmingly defeated in the House before any decisions could be made.

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              p>“If and when a compact is negotiated, it will need the approval of the state Legislature, Hendricks and the governor’s administration said in March.”

    • As my friend recently said (emphasis in bold):

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      This is very strange and I think it has something to do with spin.  I’d like to know why the Governor thinks he even needs to make a compact right now – he doesn’t.  The Mashpees chances for Land into Trust actually got more difficult recently when the Dept. of the Interior issued new regs which require land under application to be no more than 25 miles from the Tribes governmental headquarters – which is 39 miles away from Middleboro.  To get the LIT at this point would require the Mashpees to prove a connection to the land.  They have none.

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      p>The casino is inevitable meme is complete BS – and that even includes Class 2 casinos.

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      p>You know what? Let the Wampanoags try to get approval. They could very well fail.

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      p>The Governor – from the very beginning of his proposal, last summer – promised he’d let the legislature vote on the matter. If he enters into the compact, that is a direct lie. It’s also a direct lie given his recent promises that the casino issue was “dead,” as I wrote in today’s blog.

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      p>The Governor better get out of this compact deal right away. He has completely lost my trust as a voting citizen. He’d do well to not lose my support.

      • He’d do well to not lose my support.

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        p>Or what?

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        p>Is that a threat or theatrical blustering?  

        • I am a voter, Lightiris, so I would hope an elected official would care about my vote. If he or she weren’t, though, then hopefully they’d care about the 10,000s of people who feel the same way. The Governor’s already lost a lot of support over casinos. Don’t think for a second that it isn’t reflective in his current 56% disapproval rating. That number is so large that it’s clear that a lot of people who voted for the Governor no longer support him. I’m not, as of yet, one of those people. If we move into a compact with the Wampanoags I will be, along with a great deal of other people.  

          • this is not issue I feel strongly about.  Clearly there are passionate people against the notion, to be sure.   As well, there are many people who drive to Connecticut who would just as soon not drive the distance to do their gambling.  

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            p>Personally, I don’t think this is the issue to go nuts over.  But then, I’m pragmatic to a fault.

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            p>I was just rather struck by your tone and wondered what it was about.  Thanks for the civil response, Ryan.  

            • to look further into this. There was a time and age when I actually thought casinos in Massachusetts was a good thing, which is what prompted me to study more about it. I quickly learned I was mistaken.  

  2. Why do you title your post as you do. Are you suggesting that Governor Patrick has a personal gambling addiction? Or is it just tongue in cheek?

      • there is good reason to think that the WBZ article reflects a misapprehension of the complex matter of Indian gaming regulation.

  3. Dan, you must feel like Michael Douglas at the end of Fatal Attraction when it comes to this issue.

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    p>I’m continually surprised that the governor has chosen to invest such a large amount of his political capital into this issue.  He’s at the 1/3 mark of his administration, heading into the summer before a presidential campaign.  It is going to be hard to get much done before the dust settles in November.  

      • I’m fine with one casino, a healthy distance away, and understanf why those near the my favored site might feel a little differently.  That said, if Middleboro wants one, more power to ’em.

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        p>I’m more surprised that the governor keeps returning to this lose-lose issue.

          • In the nonbinding poll taken after the vote in which they did.

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            p>I guess that if they really don’t want it, then there will be ample opportunity to gum up the works, if only by getting a new cast of characters on the BoS.  

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            p>All I’m saying is: a casino there would be just peachy with me, as I am not there.

            • Casino opponents wanted a binding vote, but town officials wouldn’t let them. Nevertheless, there was a huge, overwhelming show of hands against the casino.

  5. This just made the SHNS wire a few minutes ago:

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    “I’ll be prepared when I have to be, but we don’t have to be yet.” Patrick said the tribe will “really drive” the negotiation timetable.  “It doesn’t start until they say it starts. And there’s not a lot of point in starting until the land-in-trust process is finished. Now, we’re in regular touch with them, not me directly, but members of my team are, certainly, and they have expressed an interest in working with us when the time comes. But, no, there’s no negotiation happening yet.”  

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    p>Unfortunately, that’s from the State House News Service, so I can’t prove any links. At least he’s starting to listen to us at a much quicker pace….  

    • I suspect that is what he meant all along, and that the breathless WBZ report linked in Dan’s post was both inaccurate and misinformed about IGRA.

      • I hope Deval can clear it all up. I’m more than willing to write a post on how this was all a big understanding. However, based on past history, I do have my doubts. Either way, the ball’s in the Governor’s court.  

        • Ryepower: Oh, it’s as clear as can be. The Patrick administration is talking with the Mashpee Wampanoag. Dan O’Connell is meeting today with the tribe to discuss the road improvements they’ll need to serve the casino. But the governor’s office wants you to know that they’re not negotiating over a casino. Don’t you feel better?

        • The State House News Service story you mention above appears to be taken from the Cape Cod Times story I just linked to. (Or vice-versa.) Read the whole thing. They’re talking but they’re not negotiating. Not encouraging.

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