Know when to fold 'em

Keeping a poker face on gambling
By Joan Vennochi
Globe Columnist / October 11, 2009

‘KA-CHING’’ IS on hold in Massachusetts.


A vote on gambling legislation - originally expected before the end of 2009 - is unlikely to take place until 2010. The desire to get it right is the official reason for the delay.

But Kathleen Conley Norbut, a Monson Democrat who heads a new statewide coalition that opposes expanded gambling, offers another explanation. “I don’t believe they have the votes,’’ said Norbut, president of United to Stop Slots in Massachusetts. “It’s not a done deal.’’

That’s hard to believe, given the political fire power behind the pro-gambling brigade. House Speaker Robert DeLeo, Senate President Therese Murray, and Governor Deval Patrick are all on board. In a recent WBUR radio interview, Murray - who coined “Ka-ching’’ to describe gambling - said its expansion in Massachusetts is “inevitable.’’

But there are reasons for delay.

Massachusetts is in the midst of a special election to fill the US Senate seat left open by the death of Edward M. Kennedy. One candidate is Attorney General Martha Coakley, whose office must craft and enforce any regulatory legislation. Norbut’s group wants the AG to come out against casinos. Murray, an avid Coakley-for-Senate supporter, could be inclined to get her candidate off the hook by delaying the issue until after the December primary.

The antigambling coalition is also targeting Patrick as he gets ready to run for reelection. A Patrick coordinator during the 2006 governor’s race, Norbut said the people behind her group make up the heart of the governor’s progressive base.

“Since when in Massachusetts do we start to believe in using the vulnerability of one class of people to benefit another class of people?’’ asked Norbut. She contends that Patrick’s base exploded when he backed casinos and is “still shattered’’ by it.

She may be overstating their resentment. Still, the 400 delegates who attended the most recent Democratic state convention passed a resolution declaring that the “Massachusetts Democratic Party, as a matter of both principle and policy, opposes the legalization of slot machines and any similar efforts to promote addictive and predatory gambling as a means of raising public revenues.’’

Norbut’s website proclaims that “having a voice in the democratic process and being a voice for those who cannot express their needs is one of my fundamental life missions.’’ Put that sweet sentiment up against the lobbyists, race track owners, and casino operators who are dedicated to turning Massachusetts into a gambler’s paradise and opponents face a rather uneven playing field.

Salvatore F. DiMasi, their patron antigambling saint, is gone as speaker of the House and under indictment for other State House-related business. The Bay State’s antigambling movement is left to hope the old divisions between slots and casino interests and competing geographic areas work as usual to derail consensus.

Scott Harshbarger, a former attorney general and ardent antigambling crusader, believes that any delay is good news for opponents. After the deal-making on Beacon Hill in the aftermath of Kennedy’s death, said Harshbarger, “They don’t dare run in and immediately convene a session on casinos.’’

Last month, the antigambling coalition headed by Norbut sent a letter to lawmakers, urging them to conduct “an independent cost-benefit, data-driven analysis of expanded gambling before legalizing slots or any form of predatory gambling.’’ According to Norbut, the group met with Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray and plans to meet with other top Patrick administration officials to make its position known.

With casinos and racinos going bankrupt across the country, opponents are also making the case that the old arguments about how much gambling helps the local economy are less valid than ever.

Given the stakes, the political arguments speak more loudly than any economic equation. Does Patrick want to further enrage his base, by signing gambling legislation during an election year? The progressive wing of his party has no alternative candidate. But Norbut warns that grass-roots supporters can and will stay home on Election Day if Patrick pushes his gambling agenda down their throats.

Politics is a lot like poker. You have to know when to hold ’em and when to fold ’em.