Lobby
says Baldacci
Pro-casino:
Christian group claims issue just a trial balloon
A.
Jay Higgins, Bangor Daily News
AUGUSTA — The head of the state’s largest fundamentalist
Christian lobby charged Friday that Maine’s Indian tribes are
floating the concept of a Kittery casino as a trial balloon in
anticipation
of a Democratic gubernatorial victory in November.
Emphasizing
that 2nd District Rep. John Baldacci voted for the Passamaquoddys’
unsuccessful 1993 effort to build a casino in Calais as a member of the Maine
Senate, Michael Heath said the Bangor Democrat also has close links to Severin
Beliveau. Beliveau is a prominent Democratic State House lobbyist who is
representing the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribes in their efforts to build
support for a new casino bill.
In
a Friday press statement, Heath, who heads the Christian Civic League of Maine,
accused the tribes of advancing the casino issue now to give Mainers time to get
used to the idea. He predicted tribal lobbying on the issue simply was a warm-up
for a political full-court press in 2003 when the proposal is presented to the
next session of the Legislature.
“I
think this [casino] is about John Baldacci,” Heath said. “The Democrat
front-runner for governor is pro-gambling and has close ties to [the tribes’]
legal team.”
Donna
Gormley, communications director for Baldacci’s campaign, said the candidate
had joined other family members in seclusion Friday, the day after his
mother’s funeral in Bangor. She said Baldacci needed more details about the
casino plan before offering his opinion on the proposal. She said the candidate
did not support or oppose the plan.
“As
governor, he would look at this proposal with an open mind as he would any
proposal that could potentially expand economic opportunities in Maine,”
Gormley said.
Heath
insisted all one had to do was “connect the dots” to reveal the shape of the
next political alliance that will establish Maine’s first tribal casino. With
construction estimates between $400 million and $600 million, the gambling
resort was shopped around to legislators this week by Beliveau, Republican
lobbyist Jon Doyle and tribal attorney Tom Tureen, who brokered the landmark
Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980.
Doyle
said the planned Kittery resort actually would rival the Foxwoods Casino in
Mashantucket, Conn., and generate $50 million for the tribes and $100 million
for the state’s General Fund annually.
State
Sen. Ken Lemont, a Kittery Republican, said he was aware of a 150-to-200-acre
parcel near the interstate that the tribes were evaluating.
Rep.
Chris O’Neil, a Saco Democrat, said lawmakers were told the casino would
employ 4,000 people and that 80 percent of its customers would be from out of
state.
Maine’s
Indian tribes face long odds as they attempt to set the casino plan in motion.
Under the provisions of their 1980 landmark settlement agreement, the tribes
need legislative approval to acquire land they intend to use for gambling
purposes.
Gov.
Angus S. King, who leaves office next January, has pledged to veto any casino
legislation that reaches his desk. Since the deadline for admitting bills into
the current session has expired, the tribes also would need to demonstrate to
legislative leaders that an emergency situation justifies the bill’s
authorization. With a looming veto threat, such legislation would require
two-thirds support in the House and Senate for enactment.
Time
is running out for the tribes this year. The 120th Legislature is scheduled to
adjourn no later than April 17, and many lawmakers do not relish a complicated
and emotional debate on a casino so late in the session. For all these reasons,
Heath surmised that the Indians never intended to submit a bill in the current
session of the Legislature.
“These
guys are getting us ready for next year, that’s what they’re doing,” Heath
said.
In
the latest odd political alliance involving King and presumed ideological
opponents, the governor once again finds himself flanked by strange bedfellows
in his determination to keep a casino from coming to Maine. Heath, whose group
has fought King tirelessly on civil rights protection for homosexuals, now
praises the governor for his efforts to curb gambling in Maine.
Both
men believe that a casino would lead to the expansion of gambling throughout the
state, create new challenges for local law enforcement and erode the quality of
life in Maine.
Meanwhile,
Bob Tardy, a Palmyra lobbyist representing Scarborough Downs Raceway, was siding
with King for entirely different reasons. Representatives of the horse racing
track were sharply critical of King when the governor opposed the facility’s
efforts to legalize video gambling machines there through a failed statewide
referendum. Now, Tardy says, Scarborough Downs is depending on the governor to
block the casino.
“It
would be the end of harness racing in Maine,” said Tardy, predicting that
gamblers would bypass the track in favor of casino gaming.
Heath
said Friday the Christian Civic League will be watching Baldacci as future
chapters unfold in the casino debate. He will be particularly interested in
determining whether the candidate will weigh gambling’s alleged costs to
society along with its touted economic benefits.
“One thing’s for sure, Baldacci’s history indicates he will be a lot different than Angus King — let’s put it that way,” Heath said.