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Leader says gaming tribes need to get loud and political

Tuesday, April 10, 2001 | 10:58 a.m.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- An Indian leader says it's time for casino-operating tribes to flex their political muscle and secure their economic future.

"This is an opportunity to solidify your power base, not only the economic base but the political base," Mark Macarro, tribal chairman of the Pechanga Band of Mission Indians in California, told the annual meeting of the National Indian Gaming Association here Monday.

"Participating in the political process is key," Macarro said. "You may not like it, but it's a necessary evil."

He said tribes need to spend more money on political campaigns and work against those who do not support them.

"Learn the lingo of politics and financing," he advised.

Where there are no pressing political battles, tribes with casinos should focus on long-term plans to secure their political and economic futures, he said.

"We need to understand that economic development doesn't occur in a vacuum" and can be accomplished only in a friendly political environment, he said.

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