The push to legalize casino gambling in North Carolina is gaining some national attention.
Donald Trump Jr. posted this Thursday, Sept. 7 on X (formerly known as Twitter): “What’s going on in NC? Outrageous. Shady back room deals and crony capitalism are not the path to #MAGA!” (https://twitter.com/DonaldJTrumpJr/status/1699830045966008456)
Trump, Jr. also reposted this post from the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC: “Lots of troubling reports of backroom deals and arm twisting coming out of North Carolina. A full-scale expansion of gaming, including video terminals and new casinos, is being wedged into a budget bill that was supposed to about tax cuts for the people of the state. Transparency is dying in the darkness.” (https://twitter.com/CPAC/status/1699799390804975859)
The CPAC post had a link to a CBS 17 news report (www.cbs17.com/news/local-news/) that states: “Republicans in the North Carolina Legislature met privately Tuesday to determine whether there’s enough support to include gambling in the state budget. But not everyone agrees with it.”
The news report notes that on Tuesday, Sept. 5, outside the legislative building there were dozens of people, many from Rockingham County, with signs reading “No Casino” who were there to oppose legislation to allow more gambling casinos in North Carolina.
Rockingham County is reportedly one of the three counties where the legislature would allow additional casinos; the other two are Anson and Nash.
The opposition to casino gambling in Rockingham County centers around a 192-acre tract of land on US 220 a couple of miles north of the Guilford County line that was rezoned in August to a zoning district that would allow a casino to be built.
Because the corporation that requested the rezoning is associated with a corporation that develops and manages casinos, the widespread belief in Rockingham County is that the plan is for the legislature to legalize additional gambling casinos in the state and then the 192 acres would be developed as a casino complex.
I enjoy going to the casino now and then and would find it nice to have one here, but last time I checked we are a Representative Republic where The People have a very strong say.
You can still go to one just a few more miles up the road and we can let them pay for the extra costs associated with the negative problems that will eventually come. The citizens of this area don’t want a casino and all the accouterments. Berger did because someone he knows was going to make some nice money out of the deal and it wasn’t going to be at the gaming machines. This is an issue that will be ongoing.
Politicians always “bundle” so they can get the pork and unfavorable items through. Just put it on a general ballot for the people to decide!
Getting local approval should be a slam dunk now, Trump is against it…..experience says Democrats MUST take the opposite view. Expect President Biden to be here soon to partner with Governor Cooper to push for a Casino.