Bush, brother ripped for opposing Indian casinos

Mary Lee Grant

Wednesday, June 7, 2000 | 10:40 a.m.

HOUSTON -- Gov. George W. Bush and his brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, are contributing to the poverty of Indians in their states by refusing to grant compacts that would allow casino gambling on reservations, the leader of a coalition representing 21 tribes said Tuesday.

"When Indian tribes have nothing, people like (George W.) Bush are comfortable. It is when we get money and success and begin to work together that he is threatened by us," said Keller George, president of the United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc.

Congress requires Indian tribes to enter into compacts with states before they can open gambling operations. George said by refusing to grant such compacts, the Bush brothers have exacerbated problems for Indians dealing with poverty, unemployment and poor health care.

"While Indians in some states are making money, those in others are in poverty because their states don't allow casino gaming," George said.

George, a member of the Oneida Indian Nation in Verona, N.Y., made his comments in Houston during a four-day semi-annual meeting of the group, which represents 21 tribes in 12 states, including Maine, Florida and Texas.

Representatives from Jeb Bush's office did not return calls from The Associated Press, but Jon Glogau, a spokesman for the Florida Attorney General's Office, described the Indians' arguments as "simplistic."

In Texas, George W. Bush spokesman Ray Sullivan said Bush did not oppose other states entering into gambling compacts, but was against it in Texas.

"The governor has long been opposed to casino gambling and believes it is a false economy," Sullivan said. "He believes it does not contribute to the well-being of gamblers or the long-term well-being of communities."

Both states already are dealing with litigation involving tribal gambling.

The state of Texas filed a lawsuit Sept. 27, 1999, in federal court in El Paso against the Tigua tribe in El Paso, who both operate gambling ventures, said Andrea Horton, a spokeswoman for the Texas Attorney General's office.

Horton said the lawsuit accuses the operation of being illegal. The Tiguas filed a motion on Oct. 19, 1999 to dismiss the case. The motion was denied by a federal judge two months later.

Horton said the Tiguas have since appealed the ruling, and are awaiting a decision from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

The Tiguas then countersued on Jan. 14, 2000, saying they had the right to allow gambling because they are a sovereign nation, said Horton.

The Restoration Act of 1987 recognized the Tiguas and the Alabama-Coushattas as tribes. In return, they agreed to prohibit gambling and obey Texas laws, Horton said.

Several tribes in Florida, including the Seminole and Miccosukee, opened gambling operations in Miami, Coconut, Immokallee, Brighton, and Tampa after they applied to the Secretary of the Interior for gambling permits against the governor's wishes, said Glogau.

The state of Florida currently is suing the Secretary of the Interior over the issue, arguing that states have the right to decide if they will allow gambling. The tribes have joined the Secretary of the Interior in the lawsuit, Glogau said.

In the meantime, Kevin Battise, secretary of the Alabama-Coushatta tribe located northeast of Houston in Livingston, said the policies in Texas and Florida were depriving Indians of economic prosperity.

"About half of our thousand tribe members have to live off of the reservation, because there is no work," said Battise. "I have to drive 90 miles one way to Houston to work. Our people are being broken up and our language is being lost. If we had gambling, we could have jobs on the reservation and preserve our culture."