Written by :
C Costigan
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Senator Elizabeth Warren from Massachusetts may have long-term political designs on the White House, but one of her current political goals is gaining approval for a $1 billion Taunton casino resort.
According to a recent Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Tribe post by PlaySllots4RealMoney.com website, she has thrown her support to a plan by the American Indian Tribe to get into the real money gambling business with the casino plan. This appears to be a complete reversal of her previous stance against any expansion of gambling within her home state. There are other issues with this proposal starting with the tribe itself. While any number of Native Indian American casinos have been built across the nation by reputable members of their tribe, the past history of the Mashpee has been referred to as ‘sketchy’ according to this report.
The tribe was only recently recognized on a federal basis and it has already been under a cloud of controversy. Funds were given to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who is referred to as “Casino Jack” in this report. He is currently in prison after being convicted of bribery and fraud. The tribe itself has a lingering corruption problem stemming from its past dealings with a Malaysian investment company. It is reported that several Wampanoag tribal leaders have benefitted from a $400 million loan from this company in promissory notes against future casino revenue from the proposed First Light Casino and Resort.
The investment company is known as Genting Malaysia. The current deal with the tribe would direct 40 percent of the casino revenue back to the company. In exchange, the up-front money has gone to tribal leaders in the form of six-figure salaries. The entire tribe only has 2,600 members. The investment company has some issues of its own. It has been implicated in Kuala Lumper for an alleged theft of $4.5 billion from a government investment fund. If Senator Warren fails in her attempt to gain acceptance for the casino, Genting would seek repayment of the original $400 million loan. According to this report, the tribe would not have the means to pay it back. Read more Native American Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe Casino news over here.
The real irony in this who deal is Warren herself. Her past track record has been anti-gambling, so it is more than interesting as to why she is pushing so hard for this deal to go through. As late as 2014, she was quoted as saying, “For me personally, based on 25 years of work I’ve done with these families, I just can’t support it” in reference to human cost of gambling on low-income families. In the opinion of this PlaySlots4RealMoney.com writer, “Massachusetts Casinos are championed by heartless capitalists, who see gambling for what it really is- a great way to get money from the math-challenged and into the hands of investors.”Warren tried to deflect the real money gambling aspect of this deal by stating, “Our bill (along with Senator Markey) is about recognizing the Mashpee Wampanoag tribal homelands and the tribe’s right to keep their reservation. The federal government should not renege on yet another deal with Native Americans.”
