Massachusetts: And they see nothing wrong with this?

Arrogance and isolation causes those on Beacon Hill to believe this is acceptable, when it's not.

The majority of Massachusetts voters believe the state is riddled with corruption and Governor "Slot Barns" has done nothing to dispel that belief.

Deval Patrick pick defends party thrown by firm with casino ties
Gambling czar: Not gaming the system
By Joe Battenfeld And Erin Smith

The state’s new gambling czar last night defended his decision to attend a party in his honor thrown by a Boston law firm just days after the firm won a lucrative state contract to negotiate a casino deal.

Stephen Crosby said there was nothing wrong with allowing the firm, Holland & Knight, to pick up the tab for the reception at its law office “honoring” his new appointment as head of the state’s Gaming Commission, according to an invitation obtained by the Herald.

The shindig came just one day after the Patrick administration announced it awarded Holland & Knight a half-million dollar contract to advise the state on a possible casino deal with a Native American tribe.

“I don’t think there’s a conflict,” Crosby told the Herald while heading to the party. “Holland & Knight is representing the governor’s office.”

Gov. Deval Patrick appointed Crosby as chairman of the Gaming Commission last December but Crosby said he had no role in picking the law firm to help handle negotiations with a Native American tribe for a casino in southeastern Massachusetts.

“The governor doesn’t have any control over what I do, and I don’t have any control over what the governor does,” he said.

Crosby said the party, sponsored by UMass-Boston’s Commonwealth Compact, an organization he founded, was meant to honor his service as head of the Compact and Dean of UMass Boston’s McCormack School.

But the email invite sent to guests and obtained by the Herald called it a “Reception Honoring the Appointment of Steve Crosby to the State Gaming Commission.”

Georgianna Melendez, director of Commonwealth Compact, also acknowledged that part of the reason for the party was “congratulating Steve Crosby on his appointment.”

Crosby said Holland & Knight threw the party because one of its lawyers, Steven Wright, is a board member on Commonwealth Compact.

The reception raised eyebrows among some gambling representatives who will be competing against Native American tribes for the only casino in southeastern Massachusetts. State law allows the Gaming Commission to negotiate a compact with a tribe without going through the licensing process.

Crosby, who has promised “transparency” and objectivity in his powerful new job, will play a key role in choosing casino developers, including a possible deal with a Native American tribe.

This is not the first time Crosby, who was chief of staff to former Gov. Jane Swift, has run into questions of conflict in his new post.

Last month, Crosby spoke at a gambling forum sponsored by a casino lobbyist. Crosby told the Herald last night “there was a shadow of an issue” of possible conflict of interest in that case, so he decided to speak separately from other gambling representatives.




Law firm with new casino deal hosting fete for state gambling czar
By Joe Battenfeld

The state’s new gambling czar is being feted at a reception tonight hosted by a Boston law firm that just days ago won a lucrative contract from the Patrick administration to negotiate a casino deal, the Herald has learned.

Stephen Crosby, appointed by Gov. Deval Patrick to head the state Gaming Commission, is the noted guest at the event “honoring” his new appointment, according to the invitation sent by University of Massachusetts at Boston’s Commonwealth Compact, an organization Crosby founded.

The reception is scheduled to take place at Holland & Knight law firm, which just days ago secured a half-million dollar contract with the Patrick administration to help advise the state on negotiating a compact with a Native American tribe for a casino in southeastern Massachusetts.

Georgianna Melendez, executive director of the Commonwealth Compact, said in a statement emailed to the Herald that Holland & Knight is hosting the party because it is a member of the compact and “offered to host events as appropriate.”

“Yes, we are congratulating Steve Crosby on his appointment,” Melendez said. She did not say whether Holland & Knight is paying for the shindig.

“In making the appointment, the governor cited many of the qualities that led Steve to found the Compact,” the invitation from the Compact states.

Crosby, who has promised “transparency” and objectivity in his powerful new job, will play a key role in choosing casino developers, including a possible deal with a Native American tribe.

Under the new gambling law, the state can enter into an agreement with a Native American tribe without going through the licensing process.

A spokeswoman for Crosby, who is leaving his job as dean at UMass Boston’s McCormack graduate school this week, said shde was only made aware of the reception at the law firm early today and referred all questions to the Commonwealth Compact, which is hosting the event.

“This is totally a UMass Boston Commonwealth Compact event,” said Karen Schwarztman, a public relations consultant hired to represent the new Gaming Commission.

Georgianna Melendez, deputy director of Commonwealth Compact, said she would not comment until after meeting with Crosby today.

Holland & Knight was one of two law firms selected by the Patrick administration’s Office of Housing and Economic Development to explore the possibility of negotiating the casino deal with a tribe. The contract, awarded last week through a bidding process, caps the amount paid to Holland & Knight at $500,000, according to state officials.