Bipartisan gambling opposition voiced_40405
Posted: 4/01/05
Bipartisan gambling opposition voiced
By Ferrell Foster
Texas Baptist Communications
AUSTIN–Leaders of the Dem-ocratic and Republican parties spoke in unison against the expansion of gambling in Texas during a rally on the steps of the capitol.
“Gambling is not a Democratic issue or a Republican issue,” said Sen. Jane Nelson, a Republican from Flower Mound. Texas faces a challenge in funding a number of projects, but “money raised from gambling is not the solution to our problem,” she said.
| Opponents to legislation that would expand gambling in Texas rally on the south steps of the state capitol in Austin. (Photo by Ferrell Foster) |
The Baptist General Convention of Texas' Christian Life Commis-sion organized the rally in cooperation with other groups opposed to legislation that would bring video lottery terminals to Texas. The machines function basically as slot machines.
The gambling industry is “preying upon the most vulnerable” people in society, said Tina Benkiser, chairperson of the Republican Party of Texas. “We're being asked to gamble away our children's future. … The much-hyped revenue is nothing but a mere illusion.”
Charles Soechting, chairman of the state Democratic Party, said: “Our children should not have to rely on hitting the jackpot to get a good education. … Our children are too important to risk on a bad bet like this.”
Gambling proponents have pushed slot machines as a means of raising more state revenue for education.
Rep. Pete Gallego, a Democrat from Alpine, said he's against bringing slots to Texas because he has a 6-month-old daughter who will not graduate from high school until 2023, and gambling revenue will not help her.
“Gambling is essentially a house built on sand,” he said, stressing that education funding should be built on a “permanent foundation.”
Two Houston-area state representatives–Democrat Hubert Vo and Republican Robert Talton–critiqued gambling as an unstable source of revenue that brings with it tremendous social costs.
Rep. Larry Taylor, a League City Republican, called it “such a foolish notion” to propose more gambling as a solution to the state's financial challenges. “Families and gambling do not mix. … I do not want that in my backyard.”
Rep. Aaron Peña, an Edinburg Democrat, asked: “How in the world did it come to this, … that we look to slots to solve our problems? … To make a profit off the suffering and misery of others is wrong.”
“The lottery didn't live up to its promise, and why do we think slots would?” asked Rep. Garnet Coleman, a Houston Democrat.
Rep. Charlie Howard, a Republican from Sugar Land, said he wants to “keep the character of Texas like it is. … Let's give our children a good education not tied to a fantasy.”
After the rally, citizens from around the state fanned out throughout the capitol to visit the offices of senators and representatives.
At a pre-rally meeting at First Baptist Church of Austin, Suzii Paynter, director of citizenship and public policy for the Christian Life Commi-ssion, said participants would be “walking into a capitol that I think is at a tipping point.”
The day before the rally, three key Democratic leaders had come out publicly against the expansion of gambling in Texas.
Paynter gave participants facts to share with legislators, including that video lottery terminals create gambling addicts three times faster than other gambling.
In order to generate $1 billion in revenue, as has been proposed, the state would need to have 40,000 slot machines, Paynter said. Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas has 2,000 slot machines at each site. “We're talking about massive slot barns” in Texas, she added.