Opinion: Lawmakers can't be trusted on casino bid

Friday, September 22, 2006  

"Properly viewed, Question 1 is really a referendum about the General Assembly. Can the General Assembly be trusted to negotiate a "per-annum tax rate" with the world's largest gambling corporation when:

the General Assembly has refused to prohibit its members from taking jobs with Harrah's before or after they leave office, and the Narragansett Tribe and Harrah's will necessarily already have a constitutional right to build a resort casino?

Of course it can't be trusted! And nowhere was this notion more apparent than on the floor of the House and Senate when the two chambers debated whether to place Question 1 on the ballot. The House session made Posner's observations about lobbying seem understated.

If the House and Senate leadership really wanted the people of Rhode Island to see what they might be getting Nov. 7, they'd re-broadcast the casino debate (including the portion in which the "no job" amendment was defeated), over and over again, between now and Election Day and "let the people decide" if the General Assembly is really capable of getting a fair deal for Rhode Island."

Get the Story:
Nicholas Gorham: 'Harrah's job fair' -- Casino vote means trusting Assembly (The Providence Journal 9/22)
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