Lawmakers cash in with casino bill
By Jessica Van Sack
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 -
Tuesday, February 2, 2010 -
Money-hungry Beacon Hill solons have hit the jackpot, with gambling lobbyists funneling tens of thousands of dollars into their campaign accounts as lawmakers put the finishing touches on a bill to legalize slots and casinos in the Bay State, a Herald review shows.
Lobbyists have placed their biggest wagers on the State House’s very own pit bosses - Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Robert DeLeo - who each got roughly $5,000 in 2009 from about two dozen lobbyists representing casinos.
Their political action committees cashed in even bigger, with DeLeo’s Committee for a Democratic House and Murray’s Committee for a Democratic Senate raking in nearly $10,000 each from pro-gambling lobbyists and a handful of proponents of racinos.
That the very lawmakers who are designing the expanded gambling system are accepting cash from those who will profit the most is akin to stacking the deck, a leading watchdog group said.
“This is our pay-to-play system,” said Craig Holman, of the D.C.-based non-profit Public Citizen. “The lobbyist is the chief money-peddler on behalf of casinos. Lobbyist contributions are simply contributions from their clients. It’s part of the lobbyists’ salary.”
DeLeo’s campaign treasurer released a statement saying the speaker is “at work preparing the best bill for Massachusetts.”
Murray’s spokesman, David Falcone, noted that many of the lobbyists represent multiple clients and added that Murray “does her best not to accept contributions from anyone who is directly employed by a casino or gaming organization.”
The role of casino money in the push to approve gambling palaces and slot parlors underscored a 2008 Common Cause study showing gaming interests gave state lawmakers $1.5 million in campaign cash between 2002 and 2007. Gambling proponents also ponied up $8.2 million to lobbyists between 1998 and 2007, the study showed.
But as expanded gambling gets closer to reality, the Herald review found casino-related payments to lobbyists surged by a whopping 27 percent last year, to more than $2 million - an apparent record.
Two lobbyists hired by Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson, a Dorchester native, contributed more than $10,000 to Beacon Hill pols last year. Also heaping campaign dough on key lawmakers are former state Sen. Robert A. Bernstein and former House Ways and Means budget chief David K. Shapiro of Bay State Strategies, which represents the maker of slot machines for dozens of Las Vegas and Native American casinos.
Colorado developer David Nunes, who is pitching a $4 billion casino in Medford, hired Democratic lobbyist Paul M. Pezzella last year. “We believe at the end of the day this will all be about location and financial wherewithal,” Nunes said. “Buying yourself a license is never the way to go. Earning it is.”
Nunes’ lobbyist, Pezzella, contributed more than $11,000 to key lawmakers last year.
Casino lobbyists also donated heavily to House Ways and Means chairman Charles Murphy, who received $4,300, records show.
The Burlington Democrat defended himself, saying, “If people think a $200 donation is going to affect how I decide something, they don’t know me very well.”
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Photo by Nancy Lane
STRIKING IT RICH: Senate President Therese Murray, above, and House Speaker Robert DeLeo have each received about $5,000 in campaign contributions from casino lobbyists.
2 comments:
This is great news for pro gamblers in the United States. The key will remain with Barney Frank´s amended bill. he is at the forefront of the operation and hopefully if all goes well and with this type of support, US citizens will again be able to play at online casinos once more.
Great news for pro gamblers except for the pathological and addicted, their families, co-workers, oh and the taxpayers like the rest of us that pay the costs. Such a deal!
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