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Bama Governor Spends Big to Avoid Millions in Gambling Revenue
MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA --
Governor Bob Riley of Alabama has been engaged with most of his state in a battle of will over gambling. The governor has insisted even gambling that abides by laws is illegal gambling, and he will spend hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to prevent his state from regulating gaming and earning millions.
Currently at issue is a popular style of electronic bingo found throughout Alabama. Riley holds the machines are illegal, and formed an expensive full-time Anti-Gambling Task Force to raid halls where the games are operated. Picture the Untouchables raiding a retirement village community center.
But a judge has held that differing local laws make the machines legal in some municipalities, and ordered the task force to return hundreds of confiscated machines. The governor carefully plotted how to counter this blow.
His response was to contract with private attorneys to advise his hired guns on how to proceed against sinister geriatric bingo gamblers. The two-year deal would pay the lawyers $400,000 under state "emergency" contract rules.
The governor did not request the legal work be done by the state's highest law enforcement official, the state Attorney General. This might be because the AG has come out publicly against the governor's dubious stance.
Legislators are fighting to block the contract, but the best they can do under state law is delay it for 45 days. That still allows plenty of time for voters to start a recall petition.
Previous Gambling Law News Articles
Recent Comments
| Posted by Bob Smith on 04/04/2009 03:43:50 PM EST |
Riley has to stop electronic bingo even though it is very popular with senior citizens. The John McCain's senate report on Indian affairs is what got Jack Abramoff arrested. But, somehow the scandal was never followed up by the three Bush appointed U.S. Attorneys in Alabama and no one to my knowledge has ever been investigated much less arrested. Bingo gambling has been allowed by Alabama Laws for charities and the Al. Poarch Indians. Bingo is going electronic and Mississippi Casinos are feeling a loss in gambling revenue. They are putting the pressure on the governor. Riley was suppose to stop anything that looks, tastes or smells like gambling. His agreement with the Choctaw Indian Casinos was that their $13,000,000 was to be spent to defeat the Education Lottery of 1999, make major contributions to Bob?s 2002 Governors election, prevent any form of gambling and to keep the Alabama Poarch Indians from ever getting a class 3 gambling license.
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