Texas closing down Indian gaming bonanza

"This is what we've been asking Native Americans to do, to stop sucking at the trough of social services," says tribal spokesman Marc Schwartz. "But when they start becoming more self-sufficient, we say they are competing unfairly."

The Tiguas calculated they could start a casino because gambling rules changed when Texas established a lottery in 1991. So they opened the Speaking Rock Casino in 1993. For six years, the casino was allowed to operate freely. The state stepped in to close it in 1999. Now, tribal leaders are desperately searching for help from judges, lawmakers, even political candidates.

"Indian gaming is such a hot political issue," says Kevin Washburn, general council for the National Indian Gaming Commission, set up under the Indian Gaming Regulation Act. "But the fact is, this is the most profitable way for Indian tribes to take advantage of their sovereign status. Gaming, when it works, is extremely profitable, and what tribes have in some markets is a monopoly."

Last year, for instance, Indian gaming revenue totaled $10.6 billion

"There's a specter of dangerousness associated with gambling," says I. Nelson Rose, a professor at Whittier Law School in Costa, Mesa, Calif., and an expert on Indian gaming law. "Even tribes themselves wish they could be doing something else. But what?"

In the case of the Tiguas, some speculate that then-Gov. George W. Bush had the attorney general pursue the case because the tribe gave a $100,000 contribution to his opponent, Gary Mauro, in 1998.

"Politics became personal, and the awesome weight of the state of Texas came down on the Tiguas," says Tom Rodgers, a Washington lobbyist for several Native American tribes, including the Alabama-Coushatta who are fighting a similar battle with Texas over their casino.

Indeed, many Native American tribes have begun using their casino proceeds to influence politics. The Center for Responsive Politics calculates that tribal contributions during the 2000 elections were almost $3 million, up from $1,750 in 1990.

Mr. Rose says he's not sure if Mr. Bush came out against the Tigua tribe because of the campaign contribution, but admits: "That campaign contribution woke him up to the fact that there was a full-scale casino operating in his state. Up to that point, it wasn't making a whole lot of waves."

The attorney general's office declined to comment for this story. Mr. Cornyn's office says the court documents speak for themselves Â- gambling is illegal in Texas.

"Our main goal was to become self-sufficient," says Carlos Hisa, lieutenant governor of the Tigua reservation. "We can't afford to lose what we've started."

Tribe member Mr. Senclair sums up the tribes' latest reversal of fortune this way: "I don't know why the state is saying that we are illegal. Is it illegal to provide for ourselves and other people in the community?"

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