Editorial: Limit Seminole Tribe to slot machines

Wednesday, August 22, 2007  

"Citing federal law, the Seminoles argue that if Florida allows Las Vegas-style games anywhere, the tribe has the right to offer the so-called "Class III" games at its casinos on sovereign land. Until now, the Seminoles have run slot machines that look like those in Vegas but only offer lower jackpots typical of bingo games. The state doesn't get a cut.

Gov. Bush and the Seminoles couldn't agree on a deal that would give the state a share, so Gov. Crist is trying. The federal government says that if talks fail, it will impose a settlement that could give the state nothing. On Tuesday, amid reports of progress, the feds extended the deadline three weeks.

If, as seems inevitable, the Seminoles get Las Vegas slots, the state should get a cut. But the Seminoles also are seeking the right to offer table games such as blackjack and roulette. That would be an unacceptable expansion of gambling. Already, casino operators in Broward County - voters there approved casinos, while Miami-Dade voters did not - say they will need the table games if the Seminoles get them. The tribe and casino operators undoubtedly would pay tens of millions of dollars for the chance to offer table games. And since the state's share would go to education ...

Like the games themselves, the arguments for allowing the games are seductive and pernicious. Gambling preys on people who can't afford it and can be an addiction, as Palm Beach County residents saw with Donna M. Duffer, who embezzled $1.5 million from the Convention and Visitors Bureau to try to make up her online poker losses."

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Editorial: Best bet for the state (The Palm Beach Post 8/22)