Political Quotes

“I rise today to reintroduce the Tribal Gaming Eligibility Act. This bill sets forth what I believe is a very reasonable, moderate standard for where tribes are allowed to open gaming establishments. The standard is simple: a tribe must demonstrate that it has a modern and an aboriginal connection to the land before it can open a gaming establishment on it. The new standard is needed because too many tribes in California and across the nation are ``reservation shopping''. They look for a profitable casino location, and then seek to put that land in trust regardless of their historical ties to the area. To be clear, most tribes do not fit this mold. Most play by the rules and acquire land in appropriate locations. But as wealthy Las Vegas casino interests search for ways to expand their gaming syndicates, the problem is getting worse. These syndicates have no interest in preserving native cultures and they have little interest in pursuing other forms of economic development; so they also have little interest in limiting casinos to bone fide historical tribal lands. The tragic part is that these casinos are going up despite objections from communities and other Native American tribes. That is why I am introducing the Tribal Gaming Eligibility Act.…”