Political Quotes

“I want to make four points about this amendment that I'm offering here today. First, the expansion of Indian or tribal gambling, particularly off-reservation casino gambling, has gone far beyond what was intended by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988. Twenty years ago, there were no tribal casinos. Today, there are approximately 406 Indian casinos in 29 States. Revenue from Indian gambling has gone from $0 to $19 billion in 20 years. These extraordinary profits have caused casino interests to form alliances with tribes in order to establish more profitable casinos in locations far removed from existing reservations. The second point I want to make, and there are very specific examples of 'reservation shopping,' as we like to refer to this. One, the St. Regis Bank of Mohawk Indians is trying to build a casino 350 miles from its reservation. The Bad River Band of Lake Superior and St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin are trying to build a casino in Michigan, over 300 miles from its existing reservation. The Pueblo of Jemez of New Mexico are trying to build a casino in Anthony, New Mexico, over 290 miles from its reservation. The Mohegan Tribe of Connecticut, along with the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin, is trying to build the largest casino between New Jersey and Las Vegas in Kenosha, Wisconsin, over 1,000 miles from the Mohegan lands in Connecticut.”