If the public really wanted it.......

If the public really wanted it, the predatory gambling trade would not need to spend $32 million to remind them

A pro-casino group in Ohio reports it has spent nearly $32 million promoting a fall ballot issue that would authorize casinos in the state's four largest cities (and there is still twelve more days to go in the campaign.)

A state campaign finance filing shows the Ohio Jobs & Growth Committee spent $31.7 million. Nearly all the cash came from arms of its two main backers, Penn National Gaming Inc. and Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert.

The ballot issue asks voters to approve casino construction in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo, agree to a 33-percent tax on the facilities for state and local programs and create a state committee to oversee a type of gambling that is thus far illegal in the state. Spending by its rival, the anti-casino TruthPAC, was not yet posted Thursday afternoon.

This is the fourth time the predatory gambling trade has paid for a campaign in Ohio. They were defeated in their first three tries and now they are spending $32 million to tell Ohio citizens to vote for something that supposedly they want.

It is another example of “the spend enough money until you win” strategy in action. It is also why the movement to stop predatory gambling will continue to grow across America.