Patrick, Murray lukewarm to DeLeo gambling proposal
By Michael Levenson and John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo today outlined his plan to bring gambling to Massachusetts, saying he supports construction of two resort-style casinos and a limited number of slots at the state's four racetracks.Warning that the state is mired in a “blue-collar depression,'' DeLeo said a gambling industry must be created to take its place next to the current economic engines of health care, financial services, higher education, and tourism.
Robert DeLeo Globe Staff Robert DeLeoRelatedAudio: Governor Patrick on DeLeo's casino planYet, he said, the gambling industry will not, by itself, save Massachusetts.”I have cautioned before and I am going to caution everyone here again – gaming is not a panacea,'' DeLeo told the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce this morning. “But it is a plan, it is a plan that creates a new economic sector and new jobs in Massachusetts when we need them most.''Governor Deval Patrick offered a mixed response to DeLeo’s proposal.
He said the proposal for two resort casinos “sounds right.” But he made clear he staunchly opposes DeLeo’s plan to allow slot machines at racetracks.“The point is that slots at the tracks are not where the jobs are,” Patrick told reporters at the State House. “Where the jobs are is in the resort-casino destination setting.”< Read
