Press Release: Feinstein Brokered Latest Casino Deal Between Marin &, Sonoma Counties

[Dynamique]

Release Date: July 24, 2008

STC101
Stop the Casino 101 Coalition
Representing the People of Sonoma County & Marin County, California
https://www.stopthecasino101.com

“DIANNE’S CASINO”: MARIN COUNTY COUNSEL REVEALS FEINSTEIN BROKERED LATEST CASINO DEAL BETWEEN MARIN &, SONOMA COUNTIES & INDIAN TRIBE

SONOMA COUNTY, CA: At the Tuesday (7/22/2008) meeting of the Marin County Board of Supervisors, Marin County Counsel Patrick Faulkner let slip that U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) brokered the latest deal with a North Bay casino tribe and the counties of Sonoma and Marin.

This statement, caught on video and witnessed by STC101 spokesperson at the Marin meeting, Frank Egger, confirmed a comment by Sonoma County Counsel, who, on Monday, told a Rohnert Park resident that "one of the senators" would be “willing to carry a bill” to change the language of the Restoration Act of the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria (FIGR) so that all future trust acquisitions, but not the current casino site, would be subject to the Secretary of the Interior's discretion.

On Tuesay, both Sonoma and Marin supervisors approved agreements with the FIGR that were virtually identical in content on exactly the same day, with only minimal notice to the public.

This is the second deal that the Senator has brokered to further the building of an enormous casino just outside the City of Rohnert Park. It was Senator Feinstein who, in 2003, brokered the secret deal that allowed the FIGR to stay safe and sound at the Rohnert Park site.

At that time, the Senator’s husband, Richard Blum, owned a controlling interest in Perini Corp., a construction firm that has done billions of dollars of work for the casino industry, including the building of Thunder Valley Casino, a tribal casino near Sacramento built and managed by the FIGR’s partner, Station Casinos Inc. of Las Vegas, which opened in 2003.

The Senator’s 2003 deal with Greg Sarris, Chairman of the FIGR, was that if the FIGR moved its casino site from the original Highway 37 site near the Marin/Sonoma border, she would not obstruct the acquisition of any future site, a promise she apparently continues to keep.

When STC101 Founder Pastor Chip Worthington went to Washington in 2003, he told Joel McFadden at a meeting in the Senator’s office, that he knew about the deal.

McFadden was visibly shaken, and begged Pastor Worthington not to go public with the information, to which Pastor Worthington, out of courtesy to the Senator, agreed.

The Senator’s strategy appears to be, the further north the casinos go, the better it is for the wealthy residents of Marin County and for the Senator’s home town, San Francisco.

Last year, the Senator cut a deal with Lytton Band of Pomo Indians that prevented the tribe from opening a 2,500 slot machine casino in San Pablo. The Senator commented at the time that her legislation “…ensure(d) that a major Nevada-style casino will not be built in the Bay Area in the near future.”

But her deal with the Lytton Band of Pomo Indians (San Pablo casino) has had the effect of driving the Lyttons back up Sonoma County in Windsor, where reliable sources inside Town Hall say that the Lytton have indicated that they may indeed go for the Class III casino they were denied in San Pablo, on 60+ acres of Windsor land they plan to put into trust.

“Make no mistake, this is a class struggle”, said Pastor Worthington. “Marin County is the acknowledged cash cow for the Democratic Party in California. One the other hand, us Sonoma County folks are the rubes and the hayseeds. She is using Sonoma County as a dumping ground.”

For the past five years, Senator Feinstein’s office has received innumerable requests from Sonoma County residents to amend the Graton Rancheria Restoration Act, as she had done for the Highway 37 site. This most likely would have prevented the construction of a casino on the Rohnert Park site.

Now Senator Feinstein is ready to amend the Graton Restoration Act, but only for future land acquisitions so that Marin County will be protected from a casino; The Rohnert Park site will not be affected.

“This is the grossest betrayal of trust, and a terrible blow to all of the Senator’s loyal supporters here in Sonoma County, many of whom have continued to hope that she would help them with this problem”, said Pastor Worthington. “The Senator’s behavior is reprehensible, sneaky, self-serving and conniving.”

“We face serious environmental and social impacts from Dianne’s Casino that all the money in the world cannot solve”, said. “For the Senator to put the selfish interests of herself and elite Marin County residents and the casino developers over the grave concerns of her Sonoma County constituents is unforgivable.”

“Dianne’s Casino has been the result of one back-room deal after another, and the people of Sonoma County are tired of being ignored and lied to by their elected officials.”

For the TRUTH about Sonoma County's casinos,
please visit our web site at
https://www.stopthecasino101.com

[Lenny]

“The Senator’s behavior is reprehensible, sneaky, self-serving and conniving.”

And how else may one become one of The Richest Persons in the senate?

Reminds me of that line from another lovable but corrupt official in the movie, CASABLANCA, "Gambling? Here? I am shocked!".