Minnesota governor regrets handling of tribal gaming

Thursday, June 4, 2009  

Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R), who won't seek a third term in office amid rumors of a 2012 presidential run, says he could have done a better job on tribal gaming issues.

Pawlenty proposed an off-reservation casino with three tribes. But he says he didn't spend enough time ensuring it would win support among other tribes and state lawmakers.

“I don’t think we spent the right amount of time working with them and communicating with them about our plan and trying to find some potential common ground,” Pawlenty said at a press conference, The Bemidji Pioneer reported.

“The issue of appeal there was that you had large numbers, the majority of native Americans in Minnesota in the northern tribes, who didn’t benefit much or at all from gaming,” he said. “There was this (mis)distribution of gaming resources relative to Native Americans in terms of their demographics."

When he first came into office, Pawlenty angered tribes by proposing to take a share of their revenues. "I know that tribal gaming has brought in billions of dollars, but it's time that the state get a fair deal like they have in other states and that the tribes should pay some of that money to the state," he said in an October 2004 ad.

Get the Story:
Pawlenty regret: Falling short on Indian/state casino (The Bemidji Pioneer 6/4)
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