"Let's hope the Alabama Supreme Court quickly resolves the question of electronic bingo once and for all -- if nothing else to end the war between Gov. Bob Riley and Attorney General Troy King.

The two officials' ongoing dispute over gambling is exhausting.

The most recent public dispute centers on a letter King received in 2004 from the National Indian Gaming Commission that Riley says should have spurred the attorney general to shut down electronic bingo halls like the one operating at VictoryLand in Macon County.

"The attorney general didn't do that, and the end result is a proliferation of these illegal slot machines that we now see all over the state," Riley told The News.

The letter said federal gaming investigators found evidence that some of the electronic bingo devices being played in Macon, Greene and Lowndes counties were more akin to Las Vegas-style slot machines.

But King said the distinctions under Indian gaming rules aren't as clear as Riley suggests, and besides, they have nothing to do with the laws of Alabama, which vary from county to county.

"It appears the governor has formed faulty conclusions based upon misinformation, or a lack of accurate information," King said.

Still, the letter from the National Indian Gaming Commission raises questions. How did King go from reading the letter to concluding that electronic gambling in places like VictoryLand was legal bingo? Why did he use what he now says are ambiguous Indian rules to justify his unambiguous conclusion?"

Get the Story:
OUR VIEW: Alabama courts need to resolve quickly the fight over electronic bingo (The Birmingham News 6/29)

Earlier Story:
AG Troy King, Gov. Bob Riley spar over bingo report (The Birmingham News 6/28)