The Rushed Votes should NOT have taken place before background checks were completed.
In the case of Springfield, too much was conducted behind closed doors, without adequate discussion. Any information that might disqualify MGM was publicly known prior to Springfield's rush.
Too much Casino KoolAid consumption!
Suffolk-Caesars split rattles nerves
Expert: Wynn, MGM ‘have reasons to be worried’
Wednesday, October 23, 2013
By: Dave Wedge
As Suffolk Downs scrambles to find a new gaming partner, officials in other potential casino towns are raising concerns that Caesars’ failure to pass muster with state regulators is a bad omen for other projects.
Milford Selectmen Chairman William D. Buckley fears Foxwoods, which has had financial problems and seen tribal members indicted for embezzlement, will have a tough time making it through the state gaming board’s background check.
“The Massachusetts Gaming Commission has certainly set a high bar, and Foxwoods will have its challenges,”
Buckley told the Herald last night.Foxwoods spokesman Stephen Oakes brushed off those concerns, saying, “We’re completely confident our standards of integrity, fair business practices and diversity will meet the standards established.”
In Springfield, meanwhile, officials are also sounding the alarm, firing off a letter to the gaming panel asking if it can replace MGM if the Las Vegas gaming behemoth fails its background check, the Springfield Republican reported.
MGM pulled out of its Atlantic City casino in 2010 after gaming regulators there deemed an MGM partner unfit to hold a license because of her father’s reputed organized crime ties in China.
“MGM has been granted licenses to operate in jurisdictions across the U.S. and around the world and we see no legitimate reason why we would not be granted one in Massachusetts,” MGM vice president Alan Feldman said.
Caesars and Suffolk Downs suddenly parted ways last week over red flags that surfaced in a state gaming board background investigation. The report, which is slated to be released today, flagged a Caesars business partner with reputed ties to a Russian crime ring, as well as Caesars’ $24 billion in debt, officials said.
Caesars, which has won licenses in Ohio and Maryland in the past year, has blasted the state commission for setting an “impossible standard.”
Experts say the findings don’t bode well for MGM or Wynn, which is seeking a $1.4 billion Everett casino.
“Wynn and MGM have reasons to be worried,” said Boston College sociology professor Richard McGowan, a gaming expert.
Wynn spokesman Michael Weaver said: “We are continuing to move our application onward and look forward to the process.”
Suffolk Downs CEO Chip Tuttle, meanwhile, said the East Boston racetrack is continuing talks with several “top-class” gaming operators.
- See more at: http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_politics/2013/10/suffolk_caesars_split_rattles_nerves#sthash.pE2eHzBq.xjTXdMoF.dpuf
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