Herald, former governors wrong

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, March 23, 2003

We have even more reason now to understand why the five living governors are “former” and thankfully so. They, like The Herald, seem to buy into the proposition that gaming is OK if it’s owned by a tribe, but bad if owned by anyone else. Whatever happened to the idea that we are all equal under the law? Are we choosing to ignore the state’s Constitution, which forbids the granting of special privileges to any citizen or class of citizens?

Gov. Dan Evans was one of three co-authors of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988, the key that opened the door to $12 billion in annual tribal gaming nationwide. Gov. John Spellman signed into law our state’s lottery. Gov. Booth Gardner negotiated with the Tulalips the first tribal gambling compact and now works for their public relations firm. Gov. Mike Lowry signed into law a bill that expanded cardrooms from five to 15 card-game tables. They all have turned the spigot open to expand gaming in their time in office.

The Herald bemoans the fact that consumers will spend an additional $1 billion on gaming, money that would otherwise generate sales tax.

That $1 billion generates an awful lot more in spin-off economic activity that in turn sells shoes, meals and housing, not to mention generating a lot more in sales taxes. If you don’t believe me, just ask the tribes who are fueling a major expansion at Quil Ceda Village through gaming profits. Gaming is not a zero-sum game, where a dollar wagered comes at the expense of someone else. It’s an economic engine with a proven track record.

Maybe The Herald and our former governors need a remedial class in Economics 101. Or maybe you would want a new sales tax on your newspapers. Or maybe what you really want is a personal income tax to solve the budget problem.

Marysville