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Wyden's staff meet with tribes, casino
opponents
February 14, 2004 Wyden's Staff Meets with Tribes, Casino
Opponents
Florence, Oregon - While excavators were hard at work leveling sand and preparing for the concrete pad meant to hold the Three Rivers Casino, Sen. Ron Wyden's chief of staff Josh Kardon met with both sides of the casino issue this week to gather information and try to find some common ground. While congressional involvement in the conflict is just beginning, both sides said they are glad for the mediation. "We found it encouraging that he took the trouble to come to Florence," said People Against a Casino Town spokesman Arnold Buchman. "He was very open and attentive to what our concerns were. "The problem at this juncture is that the governor has directed all of his energy into tying us up in procedural knots." Bob Garcia, economic development director for the tribes, said that he had discussed federal issues with Kardon and that he felt there were no federal obstacles to the development. He said the tribes looked forward to further dialog with the state. "We feel the best thing we can do for this community is get the casino up and running so people can see it," Garcia said earlier in February, saying that several courts had given the tribes a clean bill of health to proceed with the casino. Kardon's visit was a welcomed development for PACT, which has tried for some months to involve Oregon's congressional delegation in the casino issues. "We've been told we're politically radioactive," Buchman said, "and politicians don't want to get anywhere near us for fear of getting burned in their relations not just to this tribe, but all tribes. "Casino gambling is one of the larger special interest groups in the state. There's a lot of money involved here and politicians, including the governor, are very sensitive to it." PACT is not alone in its opposition to casinos. A Feb. 1 New York Times article reported a ground swell of opposition to casinos developing across the country. Numbers from the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling show that of 45 attempts to increase gambling opportunities in 30 states last year, only three succeeded. New York's highest court recently decided that a state-tribal gaming pact entered into by its governor was unconstitutional. In Connecticut, the state legislature repealed a law allowing casinos. "You have to figure the governor resorted to this war of attrition because he's not very confident in his position." Buchman said. "There's nothing in the world to prevent him from letting the case go to court and be decided on its merits." PACT attorneys said they were working on pinning down an exact mechanism to proceed with a new filing of their lawsuit against the governor. PACT is suing the governor on the grounds that he allegedly violated the state constitution by entering into a gaming compact with the tribes. "We're confident that we're moving forward," said attorney Liam Sherlock. "All we're facing now is a procedural pothole. The state's effort to short-circuit the case won't work; it only illustrates their grave fear of having the case judged on its merits." 2/14/04 - Siuslaw News, by Bret Yager, Florence, Oregon |
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