St. Regis Mohawk Tribe lobbies Obama on gaming

Wednesday, April 8, 2009  

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe of New York is stepping back into the off-reservation casino game.

The tribe's proposed casino in the Catskills was rejected by the Bush administration even though it was supported by the state. But now that President Barack Obama is in the White House, the tribe is renewing its push.

"We made it clear last year that we would patiently wait for a new administration to arrive in Washington and one that would hopefully revisit the injustices that were done to our tribe," Chief James Ransom said in a press release quoted by The Middletown Times Herald-Record. "That time has come."

The tribe met with a top Interior Department official to ask Secretary Ken Salazar to rescind an internal policy that restricts off-reservation gaming. The tribe also met with its former gaming partner to discuss the Catskills casino.

Get the Story:
Sullivan County casino efforts rebooting (The Times Herald-Record 4/8)