Rhode Island Governor Responds to Casino Proposal

PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island – As reported by the Pawtucket Times: "Gov. Donald Carcieri vowed Thursday that he will 'fight tooth and nail' against a proposal to amend the constitution to allow a privately run Narragansett Indian casino in West Warwick.

"…Carcieri made his remarks in response to a press conference held Thursday afternoon by the Narragansett tribe and executives from Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.

"…Part of the legislation that gave long-term contracts for the racinos at Lincoln and Newport to house the state's video lottery terminals calls for the Narragansetts to get up to $10 million a year from the revenue derived from new video slots at Lincoln.

"Narragansett Chief Sachem Matthew Thomas said the tribe has not received any money from the Lincoln machines yet.

"At a contentious press conference in the Statehouse Rotunda, Thomas, state Rep. Timothy Williamson of West Warwick and Harrah's vice president Jan Jones stated the need for a constitutional amendment to address what the RI Supreme Court has interpreted as a ban on privately-operated casinos, but they gave no specifics of the new constitutional language that will be proposed.

"The high court has said that a provision in the constitution mandating that all lotteries be operated by the state prohibits a privately run casino because a previous decision defined virtually all gambling as a lottery…"