Columnist Jeff German: Reid gears for battle over sports wagering

Saturday, Nov. 11, 2000 | 3:44 a.m.

Jeff German is the Sun's senior investigative reporter. He can be reached at (702) 259-4067 or by e-mail at german@lasvegassun.com

THE BATTLE lines have been drawn with the casino industry's foes in Washington.

And now Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., wants to make sure the industry is prepared to go to war at the next session of Congress.

Reid, the Senate's assistant minority leader, quietly has been trying to arrange a summit of top gaming leaders in Las Vegas to map out a Capitol Hill strategy to fend off the next campaign against college sports betting in Nevada.

Among those who already have agreed to participate are Bill Bible, president of the Nevada Resort Association, gaming's local political arm, and Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the American Gaming Association, the industry's Washington lobby.

A host of other big-name casino leaders -- including MGM Mirage Inc. Chairman Terry Lanni and Harrah's Entertainment Inc. chief Phil Satre -- also are expected to attend. The only thing Reid has to do now is find a date to fit into everyone's busy schedule.

The summit was supposed to take place this week, but it was canceled because Reid had to participate in the lame-duck session of Congress. Latest word is that a December meeting is being arranged.

In the past several months, Reid has noticed some holes in the casino industry's line of defense against the likes of the NCAA and Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., who is determined to push the anti-betting bill through the Republican-controlled Congress in 2001.

Last month, for example, Nevada Gaming Commission Chairman Brian Sandoval caught the industry by surprise when he suggested a $550 cap on all bets as part of a series of proposals aimed at warding off any congressional legislation. But the betting cap proposal merely gave the industry's critics more ammunition.

Brownback and company took that to mean that Nevada was acknowledging that there were a large number of illegal bets being laid off from around the country at its sports books.

Sandoval, of course, wasn't making that acknowledgment, but that didn't stop the industry's adversaries from stepping up their rhetoric. It looked to them like the industry was negotiating with itself out of weakness.

"It is merely a proposal," Sandoval says. "It has never been etched in stone. There may be a downside to it, but I understand that it also has led to a dialogue with the industry's critics."

It's a good bet Sandoval will be at Reid's gaming summit next month.

"I think Harry Reid wants everyone on the same sheet of music," one casino insider says. "He doesn't want us putting out proposals that are compromising our positions."

Reid, despite his good relationship with Fahrenkopf, also hasn't been totally pleased with the industry's lobbying efforts in Washington.

The senator was upset that the AGA was unable to rally GOP support in the Senate to his bill calling for a study of illegal gambling. Reid introduced the bill months ago to put Brownback and other gaming foes on the defensive.

Fahrenkopf, meanwhile, supports Reid's upcoming gaming summit.

"We know we're going to see this NCAA bill again," he says. "It's a very, very tough fight."

Fahrenkopf, a former GOP National Committee chairman, says he plans to meet with Nevada's newest senator, Republican John Ensign, this week to bring him into the fold.

What is not clear is whether Reid will invite Ensign, Brownback's former roommate on the Hill, to the gaming summit.

Ensign, whose adoptive father, Mike Ensign, runs Mandalay Resort Group, will be in a spot to help the industry next year.

Fahrenkopf is excited about that.

"In John, we have someone who has a rare understanding of the casino industry," Fahrenkopf says. "We have a voice in the Republican caucus who can clearly explain our side of the issues."

Just how loud the voice will be is up to the senator-elect.