Massachusetts Casino Gambling Deemed "Inevitable" By Senate Pres.

It is a feeling that many lawmakers around the country are starting to feel, and on Wednesday, Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray echoed the sentiment. Murray claims that casino gambling in the state is "inevitable."

Governor Duval Patrick took office with the plan of bringing casino gambling to Massachusetts. His first attempt, however, was shot down by lawmakers. The rejection did not deter Patrick from his ultimate goal.

This year, Patrick received a major ally in his fight for casino resorts. New House Speaker Robert DeLeo has taken a completely different approach to casino gambling than his predecessor, Salvatore DiMasi. DeLeo fully supports Patrick's plan for casinos in Massachusetts.

Patrick also has the support of Murray. A couple of weeks ago, both DeLeo and Murray pledged their support publicly for casino gambling. Now, Murray has taken it a step farther.

"I support destination casinos," said Murray, when asked about the possibility of slot machine gambling at state racetracks, "But that's only my opinion." It is also the opinion of some other powerful lawmakers in the state.

Patrick still has much work to do if he is going to swing the opinion of the House from last session. The House voted down his previous proposal for three resort casinos by a wide 108-46 margin. Murray, however, believes she can help swing those odds.

"Even in this down recession, we're seeing hundreds of millions of dollars spent by our residents going to Connecticut and Rhode island," said Murray, in an interview on WBUR, "So I think it's definitely inevitable."

October 9, 2009
Posted By Tom Jones
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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