Inslee should say no

After ignoring years of objections from elected, business and community leaders, the Bureau of Indian Affairs just recommended the Spokane Tribe should be allowed to build an off-reservation casino. This would be the tribe’s third casino; this one across the street from Fairchild Air Force Base.

While it’s not terribly surprising that the federal government ignored the local community’s input on this issue, it’s insulting that the BIA says this casino would have no negative impacts on the surrounding community. I guess that’s an easy thing for bureaucrats to say when they don’t live here.

Never mind the threat to Fairchild that current and former military personnel have detailed. Don’t worry about the expansion of off-reservation gaming that this will cause. Just forget about the taxpayer resources that will be required to fund the infrastructure needed to develop such a mega-casino. I guess if you ignore those facts, then it won’t really cause harm in our community.

Gov. Jay Inslee has the ultimate authority to decide whether this casino gets built. He needs to set politics aside and do what’s right for Spokane and Eastern Washington: Just say no to the Spokane Tribe’s application to build their third casino.

Michael Cannon

Spokane