Tribal Greed

The Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, victims of Abramoff's wiles and their own greed, is enjoying a measure of satisfaction in Jack Abramoff's downfall:

The dizzying downfall of lobbyist Jack Abramoff means more than just another Washington political scandal in this rural outpost of tin-roofed homes and fraying trailers.

It is a measure of vengeance.

Led on by what they say were his false promises of political access, leaders of the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana, which is based here, paid Abramoff and his partners about $32 million for lobbying and other services -- more than $38,000 for each of their 837 tribal members. By their accounting, they got very little in return.

It would be more accurate to say they got nothing in return, as Abramoff was also taking money from interests oppposed to the Coushatta casino. What do some of the Coushatta have to say about this?

It was thievery, tribal members said, that echoes the historic losses of Native Americans to European settlers.

"Abramoff and his partner are the contemporary faces of the exploitation of native peoples," said David Sickey, a member of the tribal council. "In the 17th and 18th century, native people were exploited for their land. In 2005, they're being exploited for their wealth."

Well now, wait a second here. It's one thing to get conquered by people who are more numerous, have better technology, and want your land. It's quite another to give your money away to a lobbyist for the express purpose of defeating other tribes that might like to enjoy some of the vast wealth gaming has brought some Native Americans. Before you start to feel too sorry for the Coushatta, note this:

Revenue from the [casino] is estimated to be about $300 million a year, and each tribal member is given a quarterly sum from the profits. Tribe finances are not disclosed publicly, but estimates of those checks per member have ranged from $30,000 to $40,000 annually. Members also receive free medical care and education, as well as financial aid to buy a home. Many have used the money for better cars and better homes. The per capita prosperity has also kicked off a baby boom, tribal leaders said, and today 342 of the tribal members are under the age of 18.

So none of the Coushatta are about to join the poorhouse anytime soon. So what's the problem here? I'm not opposed to Indian gaming. Far from it as a matter of fact. I think more tribes should be allowed to open casinos, and if old white people want to drive 4 or 5 hours to give their money away to the people whose land their living on, I have no problem with that. But I do have a serious problems with small tribes, backed by corporate interests, using their political connections to get their own casinos approved while at the same time thwarting the efforts of other tribes from starting their own because they're too greedy to share the wealth. In case you're not up to date on Indian gaming, you'll notice that only small tribes get the kind of backing necessary to start casinos. Why is that? Because it's easier to manipulate those tribes, some of which didn't exists before gaming interests found them (think the Pequots), and convince them to share the wealth with the backers because they can cut checks directly to their own members and still have more then enough money to go around. When these same small tribes fall for this (and really, who wouldn't fall for the promise of an annual check) then turn around and use their connections to try to deny other tribes the same opportunity, that's greed pure and simple. No doubt the money is fantastic, but it's unjustifiable to me that a tiny tribe can give their own members cars, houses and annual checks, when there are Native Americans living in poverty and bleakness in South Dakota or other parts of the country that rivals anything you'll find in the third world. It's unconscionable, it's unjustifiable, and it's wrong. So don't shed a tear for the Coushatta. They're doing just fine.