Looking Back: Troy's Gambling Problem

As previously noted, last week Troy King had his much-anticipated press conference to outline his position on Gov. Riley's anti-gaming task force. The end result was a lot of sizzle with no steak. Although the AG reasserted his authority to be able to shut down the task force, he did not take any action, 'criticizing' the actions instead.

In today's Birmingham News, Joey Kennedy provides a good analysis of the issue which you can read here. Kennedy acknowledges that King's conflicts of interest with the gaming interests make it difficult for him to step in. The Decatur Times Daily provides another detailed look at the issue which highlights Gov. Riley's position on the issue which you can read here.

I think it's worth pointing out that the point of this blog is not to defend every action Gov. Riley has taken. Although we are of the opinion that large-scale casino gambling would be a social and long-term economic detriment to Alabama, that does not mean that there aren't conflicts of interest on both sides of the issue. It also does not mean that Riley's task force may have overstepped its bounds in certain points.

The point of this blog is to highlight the difficulty of these problems and the need for an AG with strong conservative principles to take them on. King is approaching this issue with his hands tied behind his back because of his connections to gaming interests. His 'criticisms' fell on deaf ears, as John Tyson (the task force leader) immediately announced that he had no intention of taking King's criticisms seriously.

As Kennedy rightly points out, it's difficult to find credibility on the gambling issue right now. King is definitely not the right guy moving forward, either.

Troy King: Nothing if Not Indecisive

Troy King just had his big moment--a major press conference he had trumpeted for days as his opportunity to wade into the gambling debate in Alabama. King has been doing it subtly for some times, through angrily-worded letters and quotes in media stories through him or his spokesman. Throughout this time, Troy King has tried to have his cake and eat it, too. On the one hand, he wants anti-gambling conservatives behind him, so he has promoted the idea of a statewide vote on gambling. On the other hand, he needs pro-gambling interests like Milton McGregor and Ronnie Gilley behind him, so he has talked about raids on legitimate businesses and the need to bring jobs to these parts of Alabama.

When finally given the opportunity to choose his side, King again fell flat. You can read the Press Register's highlights here. King has criticized, even condemned, Riley's task force on gambling for several weeks now. However, when given the chance, he recommended changes while refusing to enforce them or shut the task force down.

This is a really interesting situation, in which the incumbent attorney general basically calls a press conference to say nothing. He renewed his concerns, expressed his frustrations, and at the end of the day opted to do absolutely nothing.

I echo a theme which I have expressed many times on this blog--when given the choice between talk and action, King always chooses the talk. Action is difficult, and it can create disagreement. There is nothing easy about action, whether that is reducing the crime rate, investigating political corruption, or taking on the issue of gambling. Troy King was given yet another opportunity to give order to an extremely confusing issue, and he decided instead to just prolong the confusion.

Perhaps this is smart politics, I don't know. Holding two opposing sides at arm's length seems pretty risky to me. Either way, I know it's bad government, and this is yet another reason it's time for a change in June.

King and McGregor's Scare Tactics: Two Sides of the Same Coin

The Birmingham News had an interesting piece this morning on gaming magnate Milton McGregor. McGregor has asked AG King to shut down Riley's task force on gambling. You can find the story here.

Interesting, McGregor actually says "it's time for King to 'come out of his office' and stop Riley." This quote is interesting because it underscores something frequently emphasized on this blog, that both sides of the gambling dispute deserve an attorney general willing to make his position on gambling clear instead of hiding between half-truths and clever maneuvering. Troy King has devised a way to support the expansion of gambling in this state when it comes to his supporters like Ronnie Gilley, but he continues to hide in his office at risk of exposing himself politically.

However it is also interesting that McGregor and King seem to have resorted to the same scare tactics on the gambling issue. In a way, it's like they are borrowing lines from the same source.

The News story offers the following on McGregor:

The owner of the state's largest and oldest electronic bingo casino said Monday that Alabama Attorney General Troy King should shut down Gov. Bob Riley's task force on illegal gambling before 'somebody gets hurt.'

Milton McGregor, owner of the VictoryLand casino in Shorter, in Macon County said Riley's task force and its commander, Mobile County District Attorney John Tyson, are behaving like 'storm troopers moving across the state, intimidating legal businesses and putting people out of work.'

Notice the veiled threat 'before somebody gets hurt.' Now, look at Troy King's letter to Governor Riley which he wrote back on January 29:

Aside from the possible disregard of private property rights and due process, I am deeply concerned that you may be exposing Alabama's taxpayers, your Task Force Commander, the Director of Public Safety, the Director of the Alcohol Beverage Control Board, and yourself to liability.

You can read the full letter from a link here.

Am I the only person starting to notice a trend? When McGregor and his folks are cornered, they resort to making arguments about property. Now, I agree that property rights are important. It's probably one of the most sacred rights of the American tradition. However, using that right to hide behind illicit and socially degrading activities is just not right, nor is it upheld by the law. It's also interesting here that both McGregor and King are making the same vague threats about taxpayers or others 'getting hurt' or being 'liable' for particular actions.

It seems to me that both the AG and the gambling bosses are trying to use scare tactics on this issue. It's time to let them know it's time to stop.

Betting on Election Day

Howdy all.

I realize it has been a while since we have been able to have a conversation about Troy. Since that time, Alabama has won a National Championship, and gambling made its way all the way out to California with an anti-Bob Riley sign flying above the Rose Bowl.

This past year, Alabama football represented a whole lot of what's good about Alabama. Mark Ingram won the Heisman trophy, and in his tearful acceptance speech won the hearts of a nation. A gritty, collegial team made its way out to California where their character proved itself in the game against Texas. For those of y'all who pull for Auburn, their gritty OT performance spoke pretty highly of leadership as well.

I bring this up to say that, in a world of bad, there is good news out there about Alabama. There are reasons to be proud, and it's time for our politicians to live up to this expectation as well.

So, it's now an election year, and the gambling issue has morphed into a full-fledged forest fire, complete with resignations, allegations, and grandstanding. Troy King is trying to play both sides of this issue, and he's doing so rather cleverly. At some places and events, he laments that his hands are tied, telling voters that he is anti-gambling and merely bound by the horrible, inflexible law which needs to be changed by voters. In other newspaper stories, he is criticizing Governor Riley for threatening to shut down jobs. Thus, in some places, he is anti-gambling; in other places he is parroting the Milton McGregor line that gambling brings jobs to our state.

I realize that gambling is a tough issue, and I realize that there are passionate folks on both sides of the aisle. That said, I think many conservatives can agree that it is a bad thing to build an economy based on addiction. Just look at Nevada, which I cited last year. They had a particularly bad time in this recession, because as people made less money (or worse, lost jobs), they gambled less. They refused to travel, and the economy tanked. This does not even consider the crime and lewd behavior which can surround casinos. If we want to talk about economic development, how about we focus on energy, technology, or other forms of businesses which are on the rise? By focusing on gambling, we're really just selling folks short. Look at the Indian establishments which have been protected by federal law for several decades. Instead of rehabilitating communities, it has really reinforced other problems such as poverty and alcoholism. I, for one, as a conservative, support real and lasting economic growth.

That said, economic growth and 'jobs' are beyond Troy King's duty, by his own admission. His job is to respect the law, which as many have reported, the Supreme Court has made quite clear. BINGO in Alabama refers to card-and-token bingo played in a senior center or veteran's center. It is a community activity meant to bring people together, not a big business meant to enrich the pockets of special interests. Alabamians have gone to the polls locally and statewide to restrict gaming in this state. Troy King wants our state to spend more money to have more elections on an already jaded issue.

Why does Troy King do this? I believe the evidence is pretty strong that political motives are behind this. He issued an opinion favoring Country Crossings (now a household name) several weeks after attending a special party held in his honor (he was listed as a special guest) at the developer's home. PAC-PAC research demonstrates that people like McGregor have been supportive of Mr. King, and this, compounded with his other questionable ethical decisions, suggest that politics is the motive.

I, for one, support real economic growth, and I believe that all conservatives believe fervently in the rule of law. Troy King claims to support the rule of law, yet he has taken every opportunity to make that law far more confusing than was intended or necessary. For these reasons, it's time to replace him with someone who will do Alabama proud and bring the clarity needed to resolve this situation.

Troy King: Gambling on Gambling

Troy King has made a big gamble on our state's future. I've analyzed the detrimental impact of gambling on Alabama in the past, and I won't revisit it today. Instead, I want to look this afternoon at Troy King's intriguing responses on the issue.

As a conservative, I remember laughing at John Kerry in 2004 when he attempted to defend a vote by saying: "I voted for it, before I voted against it." We all laughed at this statement, but now some so-called conservatives attempt to defend Troy King for doing what is effectively the same thing. Troy King won't give us a clear opinion on gambling. Many of his supporters, like developer Ronnie Gilley, will. They will tell you that gambling is great for economic growth, and it brings jobs to repressed regions of the state. Now, I have responded to this argument in the past, and I will summarize my response here. I looked to the Huntsville Times editorial which called gambling a source of "phantom revenue," meaning that it was unreliable. Look at states like Nevada, which have seen revenues plummet by some 2/3 since the economic crisis has forced less tourism. Next, I looked to a fundamental conservative principle--morality. Edmund Burke, considered by many to be the first traditional conservative, summarized his moral philosophy simply--you have no right to do a wrong. With using gambling as a revenue source to fund state sources, you are doing something wrong. In a time of economic crisis, when people have less to spend, the state has to hope that people will choose to gamble, in order to keep funding state services like education. This creates a perverse incentive for the state to not only promote, but also actively encourage gambling, and that just doesn't make sense in an economic crisis. Finally, I encourage folks to look at Indian reservations and rural communities which have gaming establishments. These are not success stories. On Indian reservations, where gambling has been a major mode of economic development for several decades, only more depression and alcohol problems have ensued. I challenge anyone to point to an area where gambling was built either ethically or successfully. Even where it has been successful, in places like Las Vegas or Atlantic City, it has often financed or been financed by shady groups and activities.

HOWEVER, that is not what Troy King is willing to argue. He is not willing to step out and engage in this issue like Democrats Artur Davis and Ron Sparks. He engaged in stealth warfare, legalizing gambling under narrow exceptions and claiming that he is being a true conservative and "following the law." I have big problems with this argument. First, other conservatives have viewed this issue and reached the opposite conclusion. Jeff Sessions, Bill Pryor, Bob Riley, and Riley's anti-gaming task force have all added their eyes to the issue, and they have all reached the same conclusion--it is not legal. These men certainly seem like conservatives to me. Second, as the Birmingham News has noted, the courts of Alabama, traditionally ruled by conservative Republicans, have refused to grant the same types of narrow exceptions granted by Troy King. So, if Troy King is right, his logic defies the logic of EVERY SINGLE other conservative in Alabama. Everyone else has reached a conclusion which differs from Troy King's.

Finally, Troy King has reached this conclusion on questionable grounds. He was the guest of honor at a party held by developer Ronnie Gilley six weeks before issuing an opinion in his favor. King has also received money from PACs which received hundreds of thousands of dollars from gaming magnate Milton McGregor. So, when you look at the facts, it seems that Troy King's opinion on the matter is based not on his own convictions, but on other political motives.

At the end of the day, the issue is still the same. If this opinion is Troy King's out of conviction, it deviates from that of every major conservative in the state. If this opinion is Troy King's out of corruption, then he has violated the trust of the voters of Alabama. If this is his convcition, his recourse his simple--he should go out and join the Democrats, who agree with him. Ron Sparks and Artur Davis, the Democratic nominees for Governor, have both agreed that gambling is needed for economic growth. If he has been corrupted, he should admit his failings and resign his post. Either way, he should stop masquerading as a conservative on this issue when he clearly is not.