Post by Okwes on Mar 22, 2007 14:37:43 GMT -5
Tribe expands role in politics, casino
The Grand Ronde tribe took a big gamble on the governor's race and lost. But
the tribe won in the end, with newfound political clout and a major
expansion of its Spirit Mountain casino.
The Grand Ronde flexed its political muscle as never before, bankrolling
$818,000 in television attack ads against Democrat Ted Kulongoski and Republican
Kevin Mannix for supporting a rival Columbia Gorge casino project.
The ads praised the pair's primary opponents, Democrat Jim Hill and
Republican Ron Saxton.
The strategy could have backfired by alienating a sitting governor. But
Kulongoski quietly inked a new compact enabling a 33 percent expansion of gaming
at Spirit Mountain, Oregon's top tourist destination.
-- Steve Law
The Grand Ronde tribe took a big gamble on the governor's race and lost. But
the tribe won in the end, with newfound political clout and a major
expansion of its Spirit Mountain casino.
The Grand Ronde flexed its political muscle as never before, bankrolling
$818,000 in television attack ads against Democrat Ted Kulongoski and Republican
Kevin Mannix for supporting a rival Columbia Gorge casino project.
The ads praised the pair's primary opponents, Democrat Jim Hill and
Republican Ron Saxton.
The strategy could have backfired by alienating a sitting governor. But
Kulongoski quietly inked a new compact enabling a 33 percent expansion of gaming
at Spirit Mountain, Oregon's top tourist destination.
-- Steve Law