Democracy for sale

Gambling interests bet $5.6 million on 2010 elections in Alabama, reports show

Pro-gambling interests have spent about $5.6 million so far during the 2010 campaign season, including nearly $1.5 million since July, a Birmingham News analysis of campaign finance reports shows.

Casino owners and other gambling-related interests have sent the money through 134 political action committees, including 29 created since June, disclosure forms show. A complete tally will not be available until the end of January, when final disclosures are filed.

The Poarch Band of Creek Indians, which owns three Alabama casinos, contributed nearly $1.4 million between June 29 and Oct. 26, disclosures show.

In the last year, the Poarch tribe has sent $2.8 million to 90 PACs, disclosure reports show.

Some of the pro-gambling cash can be traced to candidate contributions. Some indirectly supported candidates through payments to political consultants and advertising companies. Some even went to get-out-the-vote efforts.

But most of the gambling-related money has been sent from PAC to PAC, often combined with non-gambling money to obscure the source of contributions to executive, legislative and judicial branch campaigns.

"It helps camouflage the ultimate source of the funds, and makes it harder to trace," said William Stewart, an expert on Alabama politics and professor emeritus of political science at the University of Alabama.

Contributing money through dozens of PACs also "dilutes the impression that you're buying a candidate's loyalties," Stewart said. "If the money comes from a lot of different sources ... it does not seem like they're trying to buy an election."

Bingo battles

Gambling, especially games billed as electronic bingo, has been a hot topic in Alabama politics.

Major electronic bingo operations have been shut down under pressure from Gov. Bob Riley's task force on illegal gambling. The effort has led to lawsuits and court appeals over whether the bingo machines are legal.

Only the Poarch casinos, which operate under federal authority, have remained open. Riley, who leaves office in January, has said he also wants those bingo games shut down.

An effort failed during the 2010 legislative session to pass pro-bingo bills, amid a federal investigation.

Earlier this month 11 people, including casino operators, lobbyists and state senators, were indicted in what federal prosecutors say was a scheme to buy votes for the gambling bill through bribes, including campaign contributions.

The 11 defendants have pleaded not guilty. A 12th person, a former lobbyist, has admitted to federal charges in the case.

One of the indicted lobbyists, Jarrod Massey, recently shut down nine PACs he formed in September 2009. They were funded by Massey's lobbying firm, whose clients include Ronnie Gilley.

Gilley, who also was indicted in the federal case, owns a controlling interest in the Country Crossing resort, which closed its casino in early 2010 to avoid a raid by the governor's task force.

Milton McGregor, a gambling magnate who also was charged in the federal indictment, sent about $1.9 million to 50 PACs in late 2009. No records of later donations could be found in disclosures.

Two PACs funded by Greenetrack in Eutaw, whose electronic bingo operation was shut down in early July, had nearly $300,000 in reserve after the primary, disclosures show.

One of them, JP PAC, has spent nearly $112,000 since late September, including a $50,000 donation to the state Democratic Party.

State Sen. Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, who helped lead protests when the governor's task force raided Greenetrack in July, also got two donations totaling $42,000 from JP PAC.

JP and HL PACs still have some $188,000 in Greenetrack money, disclosures filed Wednesday show.

Poarch money

Most of the new money from gambling interests since the primary has been contributed by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, disclosures show.

"They have a near-monopoly now," Stewart said. "They like things the way they are. They don't want efforts made to interfere with their operations."

New PACs sprouted up to handle the Poarch money.

Montgomery lobbyist John Teague, who started 21 new PACs in December 2009 to handle contributions from gambling interests, joined lobbyist James A. Gray to form three more in July.

The sole donations to those three new PACs was $49,500 from the Poarch tribe. That money was sent to another Teague PAC, disclosures show.

Since the primary, the Poarch tribe has sent more than $560,000 to PACs run by Teague, disclosures show. Teague's PACs sent about one-fourth of that money to Huntsville-based Tennessee Valley Citizens for Economic Development.

The Huntsville PAC pooled the money with cash from other sources, then spent nearly $790,000 on political advertising, consulting and polling in one month starting Aug. 17, reports show.

The Poarch tribe is one of James A. Gray's lobbying clients, state records show. Gray, along with Montgomery lobbyist Phillip S. Gray, formed 15 new PACs in June, state records show.

Those PACs got nearly $248,000 from the Poarch tribe, 98 percent of the money the committees have received, disclosures show.

Some of the money from the Grays' PACs went to legislative candidates. But most went to other PACs or was spent for get-out-the vote efforts, reports show.

David Driscoll of Huntsville formed 11 new PACs in September, which got their sole funding, $162,000, from the Poarch tribe, reports show.

That money was passed on to PACs run by Teague and Tennessee Valley Citizens for Economic Development PAC.

Three other PACs run by Driscoll got $175,000 from the Poarch tribe in September and October.

They passed the money on to other PACs that contributed to Democratic candidates, including Ron Sparks, whose candidacy for governor includes a pro-gambling platform.

Stewart said the amount of gambling money spent for candidates and political campaigns during this election does not surprise him.

"It shows how much money they are making and are willing to share with those that are friendly to their cause," he said.