As I wrote last week, the Morongo Band of Mission Indians is going on the air today with a TV ad, viewable here, promoting the passage of the new casino tribe compacts in the California state Assembly. The initial buy is statewide cable TV, with some broadcast TV in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Sacramento, for $1.25 million for the first week.
The compacts were negotiated by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s administration and easily approved by the state Senate. But passage in the Assembly may be more problematic.
The ad is in two versions, 30 seconds and 60 seconds. It begins with the image of a bald eagle soaring and features a host of Native Americans.
“California and California Indian tribes. Together, we soar,” the narrator declares. “Not so long ago our tribes were but a small part of California’s economy, and now we soar.”
Calling the casino tribes “good, responsible neighbors that bring thousands of jobs,” the ad tells people to urge legislators to approve the compacts, which will generate revenue to “help balance the budget, improve education and provide high-quality healthcare for those who need it most.”
“Don’t let special interests stand in the way,” says the narrator, referring to the union opposition.
The ads come out of Schwarzenegger’s 2006 re-election campaign shop, courtesy of campaign manager Steve Schmidt and media consultant Fred Davis, who produced the advertising.
While the first week of TV advertising will cost $1.25 million, weeks of media buys are planned. The advertising, paid for by the Morongo, pushes the Asssembly to ratify all the tribal pacts. Assembly Democratic leaders say they will take their time on this. But while they do, they can expect the advertising to continue.
The TV ads support a massive expansion of casino gambling in California. Five tribes in Southern California would increase the number of their slot machines from 10,000 to 32,500. Schwarzenegger has included revenue from the deal in the current budget, some $500 million, and it’s needed given lower than anticipated tax receipts so far.
Those tribes are the Morongo, who operate in the Palm Springs area, the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuila Indians in Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in San Bernardino, the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians in Temecula, and the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation in the San Diego area. (The latter have the distinction of being the first tribe to intervene in the 2003 recall election, against Schwarzenegger.)
A sixth tribe, the relatively poor Yurok, would benefit by gaining 99 slot machines in a remote part of Northern California. This will help the tribe keep its gas station open during the winter. There will be no gambling Xanadus in Klamath.
The compacts failed passage last year in the Legislature. Democratic legislative leaders complained that Schwarzenegger got them to the Legislature too late for considered judgment.
But there was another factor at work. Organized labor was strongly opposed. In fact, it still is. The casino and restaurant workers union, in particular, wants more protections for labor organizing in the deals, some of which was present in previous compacts negotiated by the Schwarzenegger Administration. Labor also wants an audit done of the casino tribes books.
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| Comments (32) |
I thought people said there wouldn’t be Indians in the ads.
In the ads, yes. In the casinos, no. lol
Right.
How much do you think they’ll spend?
I’ve seen the ad twice this morning on broadcast in Sacramento (FOX channel 40). The 60 second ad I think.
Not sure. Could be as much as $20 million.
>Capitol Boy :
How much do you think they’ll spend?
Apr 24, 2007 07:05 AM
Of course. It’s like advertising in Washington on a congressional issue.
>From the capitol :
I’ve seen the ad twice this morning on broadcast in Sacramento (FOX channel 40). The 60 second ad I think.
Apr 24, 2007 07:21 AM
What is the average size of the band or tribe operating and profiting from a casino — about 40 people? The impression they have always tried to leave is that these casinos are benefiting scores of Native Americans in our state, when in fact the money is distributed to a very few. If people knew this, there probably would never have been Indian gaming here.
Tribes are frequently bigger than that, although not necessarily a lot bigger.
I think you’re right.
However, now I think most people just want to have fun. And these casinos are getting pretty slick, though it’s hard to reproduce Vegas.
Actually, Indian gaming around the country, rather than detract from Vegas, seems to be feeding it.
Vegas is getting bigger than ever.
That’s a scary thought.
20 million?!
Agua Caliente has a population of approximatlely 400, but tribal membership is lower as other Indians live on this reservation. This tribe has two successful casinos making over 300 million a year.
San Manuel has a membership of approximately 90 individuals, Time Magazine reporting a monthly stipend of $100K each.
Sycuan has a population of 120 and their casino currently makes $200 million plus a year.
Morongo reports a population of 849 persons but many other Indian people live on this reservation, it is unclear how many members are benefiting from the $15 -$20 K per month stipend reported in April Economist Magazine.
Pechanga is desenrolling and evicting long standing members of its Tribe, increasing the monthly stipend to remaining members, approximately $20,000.00 per month.
These compacts will turn millionares into billionares.
Do these compacts protect the welfare of the public from the impacts of gaming?
Damn Greg, way to lay some science on us.
I think I’m going to be a Native American. lol
I haven’t evaluated them. I’ll leave that to others. I’m reporting on the lobbying effort.
>Do these compacts protect the welfare of the public from the impacts of gaming?
Apr 24, 2007 09:00 AM
Greg,
The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians has approximately 400 members; the lower number you indicate is incorrect. Tribes in California vary greatly in their populations.
All of the Amended Compacts have specific and detailed provisions regarding the mitigation of casino impacts, (for example, see First Amendment to the Agua Caliente Compact, Section 10.8 and Exhibit A).
California Indian Tribes have provided the sole support to the State Office of Problem Gambling, through the money they have paid into the Special Distribution Fund. Individually, tribal casinos have policies and programs to identify and exclude problem gamblers; Agua Caliente has also for years donated to a local non-profit problem gambling program.
California Indian Tribes with casinos have also for years shared their revenues with non-gaming or poor Tribes. The Amended Compacts substantially increase the amounts paid by their respective Tribes into the Revenue Sharing Trust Fund.
For more information on the gaming compacts, please go to the website of the California Gambling Control Commission at http://www.cgcc.ca.gov.
There have been reports some casino tribes are nervous that their brethern in pushing for expansion and getting overly involved in politics threaten to undermine public support. And point to the defeat of Proposition 70 in Nov. 2004 as an example of the sort of over-reaching that could cause a backlash.
These compacts are perfect. No one could possibly opposes them. lol
Thanks, Alva.
Of course, the big difference is that Schwarzenegger led the campaign against the tribes in 2004. But he supports these compacts.
>Dana :
There have been reports some casino tribes are nervous that their brethern in pushing for expansion and getting overly involved in politics threaten to undermine public support. And point to the defeat of Proposition 70 in Nov. 2004 as an example of the sort of over-reaching that could cause a backlash.
Apr 24, 2007 11:12 AM
The gaming tribes need to compromise with the unions.
I am rather cynical about this, admittedly. The Indians aren’t poor anymore and have become another rich special interest. But many want to gamble, so there’s no reason that money shouldn’t stay in California.
Bill, I agree that Schwarzenegger was key to the defeat of Prop 70. But his success came partially from tapping into the growing discomfort the public has at the perception of the casino indians becoming (as Jonathan phrased it) “another rich special interest”.
Actually, the history of it is that Arnold made it his top priority to defeat the casino initiatives.
He was the opposition.
Well, I think Dana’s point is that if the public was already inclined against Prop 70, it may be harder for Schwarzenegger to push the pro-gaming side of the argument than it was to push the anti-gaming side.
I guess we’ll just have to see how it turns out…
Ah, no. The voters didn’t know.
How many gambling intiiatives were there that year? The race tracks were in there, too.
A couple. Schwarzenegger ended up bombing the rubble, then went looking for more game, like passing the stem cells initiative and beating the 3 strikes reform initiative.
The public was like, huh? before the Schwarz got involved.
Didn’t the horse racing people hire Schwarzeneger’s people to pressure the Indians?
Yeah, it was a very. complicated bank shot game with George Gorton and Don Sipple working for the horserace tracks.
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