That was the Folly on which Predatory Gambling was sold in Massachusetts. Don't believe it!
Folks don't come to Massachusetts to GAMBLE and fewer will come if we don't REPEAL THE CASINO DEAL.
Steve Wynn with his nip-and-tuck personae, would convince that BRIBING FOREIGN OFFICIALS in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act is simply.....hmmmmm....local custom?
What's a few million dollars? It's just the cost of doing business!
And MGM?
Oh...well....being connected to Asian Organized Crime is no big deal after all....well, is it?
All they have to do is promise not to do it in Massachusetts and everything is OK....right?
Massachusetts Gaming Commission reaffirms view that casinos should market tourist attractions
Stephen Wynn, CEO of Wynn Resorts, right at the microphone, and Kim Sinatra, general counsel for Wynn Resorts, left, appear before the Massachusetts Gaming Commission on Thursday to defend the company's operations in Macau in China. (Dan Ring / The Republican)
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on October 17, 2013
BOSTON - State gaming regulators said that developers of casinos will be judged on their plans for promoting tourism, but they stopped short of saying a license application must include evidence of a formal partnership with a regional tourist organization.
During a lengthy meeting at the John B. Hynes convention center in Boston, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission also questioned executives of Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts International about their foreign gaming operations.
During the afternoon, two leaders of the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau on Thursday asked the commission to require that all applications for the casino license in Western Massachusetts must include documentation of "an established mutually-beneficial partnership" with the bureau, designated as the regional tourist council for the Pioneer Valley.
Stephen P. Crosby, the chairman of the commission, said there is currently "tremendous incentive" for casino companies to demonstrate a commitment to tourism promotion. Crosby said the commission's regulations, application form and the state gambling law already make it clear that casino operators must demonstrate they will boost tourism and work with agencies such as the convention and visitors bureau.
"I don't know if we can go further than that," Crosby said.
Artists' renderings of the proposed MGM Springfield (above) and Mohegan Sun Massachusetts casinos. "We truly got everything and more than what we were hoping for," said Rosskothen, chair of the gaming committee for the convention and visitors bureau.
Wydra said commissioners sent a message to proposed developers that they will need to show a strong commitment to tourism promotion.
Rosskothen said the convention and visitors bureau is working on "meaningful, two-sided" marketing partnership agreements with the Mohegan Sun Massachusetts, which is planning a nearly $1 billion casino resort in Palmer, and MGM Resorts International, which is planning an $850 million resort in the South End of Springfield.
In the negotiations with MGM and the Mohegan Sun, the bureau is seeking a program to award points to gamblers that can be redeemed at local restaurants, movie theaters or other attractions, cross-promotion of local businesses through social media on the Internet and through signs and brochures at casinos, transportation from casinos to attractions in the Pioneer Valley, regional marketing funds, active membership in the bureau and funds to help the bureau bring sporting events to the region.
Rosskothen said the bureau is making progress with both casino companies seeking the lone state license for Western Massachusetts.
The 250-member bureau, an affiliate of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts, is one of 16 regional tourist councils in the state, responsible for promoting the Pioneer Valley as a destination for conventions, meetings, group tours, sports and leisure travel.
Wydra presented statistics showing the importance of tourism in Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties. Spending in the industry is $662 million annually, she said. The industry is responsible for 4,390 jobs, $136 million in wages, $35 million in state taxes and $14.7 million in local taxes.
Rosskothen and Wydra appeared before the gaming commission after executives of Wynn Resorts LTD and MGM Resorts International took questions about their foreign gambling operations.
John McManus, executive vice president of MGM Resorts International "We don't tolerate criminal activity on our premises," said Stephen Wynn, founder and CEO of Wynn Resorts, which is planning a casino in $1.2 billion casino resort on the Mystic River in Everett. "I want to be held to that standard."
Wynn and an executive for MGM discussed their gambling operations in Macau, located in China and the world's top gambling market.
The commission is investigating the business practices and ethics of companies as part of background investigations during the licensing process. The five-member commission, which is planning to award casino resort licenses in April, looks at a broad category called "the integrity, honesty, good character and reputation" of an applicant.
Wynn voiced concerns about Macau's dependence on "junket operators," which get a commission for bringing wealthy gamblers to the casinos.
"It isn't being stolen," Wynn said of gambling money in Macau. "It isn't being converted. It's being lost and paid."
Wynn cautioned the commission about obtaining information during its background checks.
"I'm a better source than an absentee footnote," Wynn said. "Question me. We are doing the work."
Gayle Cameron, a member of the commission and a former deputy superintendent with the New Jersey State Police, told Wynn that the commission needs to determine if "a criminal element" is involved in a casino's operations.
Cameron said she was concerned that Wynn held "disdain" for investigations.
Crosby attempted to assure Wynn about the goals of the commission's background investigations.
"Basically, we're looking for criminals, or close to it, and to try to make sure no such people are involved in our operations," Crosby said.
Before Wynn spoke, John M. McManus, executive vice president and general counsel for MGM Resorts International, appeared with Patrick Macamba, a lawyer from Atlantic City, N.J. and a couple of "experts" for MGM, including Mark Lipparelli, former chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, and Peter Cohen, former executive commissioner and chief executive officer of the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation in Australia.
Lipparelli and Cohen encouraged gaming commissioners to share information with government officials who oversee casinos in Macau.
As part of its background check into MGM, the gaming commission might question MGM's partnership in Macau with Pansy Ho, whose father had organized crime connections, according to a report by gambling regulators in New Jersey.
In a recent filing in New Jersey, MGM said it now controls 51 percent of MGM China Holdings, which is the parent of MGM Macau, reducing Pansy Ho 's ownership to 27 percent.
In an interview after appearing before the gaming commission, McManus said he was not concerned that MGM would fail a background check in Massachusetts because of its partner in Macau.
"We've been found suitable everywhere we have done business," he said. "We are very comfortable with our operations in Macau, with our relationship with Pansy Ho there. We're now a public company and she is minority shareholder."
NOT SO! New Jersey asked that MGM severe its ties with Patsy Ho and MGM instead severed its ties with New Jersey.
http://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/10/massachusetts_gaming_leaders_r.html
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