Oh, Christmas Tree…

With real casino competition in Southeast Wisconsin, the Menominee Indian Tribe would be the largest economic contributor to the Badger State, making more than $2.2 billion in payments to state and local governments over the Kenosha casino’s first 25 years of operations. That’s more than any other Wisconsin business or tribe.

But the Menominee Tribe is already a big part of Wisconsin. Just look and see what the Menominee Tribe is giving the state that has been its home for generations.

Happy Holidays.

Support real casino competition in Southeast Wisconsin by signing the online petition.

Potawatomi monopoly gets ink in Madison; Las Vegas makes more room for competition

It’s two-fer Wednesday at Casino Competition for Wisconsin. First, check out today’s Wisconsin State Journal, featuring an op-ed on Potawatomi’s regional gaming monopoly.

Second, take a look at this cool video from the Las Vegas Strip, where workers imploded the old New Frontier casino-hotel to make way for an $8 billion resort that will include residences, a luxury hotel, shops…and a brand-new casino. This $8 billion resort is a stone’s throw from the $5 billion in new Las Vegas hotel/casino developments we blogged about last week. Competition continues to bring positive economic development and investment to some communities, and it can do good things for Wisconsin, too.

Support fair competition in Wisconsin’s gaming market by signing the online petition.

Vegas casino expansions prove competition breeds success

A friend of Casino Competition for Wisconsin recently traveled on business to Las Vegas, where a quick walk down the Strip led him past not one, not two, but THREE major casino expansions within just a few blocks.

• Las Vegas Sands Corporation, will open The Palazzo, a luxurious addition to the company’s massive Venetian, next month. The $1.8 billion, 53-story tower will include a 105,000 square foot casino.

• Harrah’s is building a $1 billion expansion to its famed Caesars Palace resort, including 39,000 square feet of additional casino space.

• Wynn Resorts is building the $2.2 billion Wynn Encore Resort – with a brand-new, 72,000-square-foot casino – right next door to its AAA Five Diamond/Mobil Five Star casino resort, Wynn Las Vegas.

These three projects represent a $5 billion investment in one of the most competitive gaming markets in the world – and you don’t invest that kind of money if you don’t think you can make a healthy return. Casino competition seems to be alive and well – and creating jobs, economic opportunities and enhanced tourism – in Las Vegas.

Support the benefits of casino competition in Southeast Wisconsin by signing the online petition.

Milwaukee Biz Blog focus turns to Potawatomi's $5.4 million anti-competition campaign

“A Litany of Greed,” the new white paper putting a price tag of $5.4 million (and counting) on the Forest County Potawatomi’s widespread efforts to block competition and preserve its monopoly, is the subject of Monday’s Small Business Times “Milwaukee Biz Blog."

The Small Business Times piece by Casino Competition for Wisconsin exposes the real “soldiers” in Potawatomi’s war against competition, blogging that "an army of high-priced lobbyists, political pollsters, ad executives, PR experts and lawyers are carrying out Potawatomi's anti-competition battle plan - sadly, even several Milwaukee-area nonprofits beholden to the Potawatomi for funding have been drafted to lend their name to the misguided cause."

You can read the “Milwaukee Biz Blog” for yourself here.

Help put an end to Potawatomi’s Southeast Wisconsin monopoly by signing the online petition.

Milwaukee radio host blasts Potawatomi’s $5.4 million efforts to block competition

“A Litany of Greed,” the new Casino Competition For Wisconsin white paper detailing the Forest County Potawatomi’s $5.4 million (and counting) campaign against competition, is making some waves in Potawatomi’s own off-reservation back yard.

Milwaukee radio talk show host Charlie Sykes used the Litany to blast the Potawatomi’s pro-monopoly crusade on his show Monday morning, telling his listeners, “Almost everything you see and hear attacking that (Kenosha) casino is bankrolled by the Potawatomi.”

Take a listen for yourself.

Say yes to real casino competition in Southeast Wisconsin and sign the online petition.

What’s a casino monopoly worth to the Potawatomi? Try $5.4 million…and counting.

The Forest County Potawatomi’s no-competition campaign has left many people shaking their heads. They see the ridiculous ads, read about the outrageous lobbying targets and watch in disbelief as Potawatomi’s leaders use bogus economic claims, publicity stunts, front groups and other expensive tactics to try to kill the Menominee Tribe’s proposed Kenosha casino, dodge competition and lock in Potawatomi’s Southeast Wisconsin gaming monopoly.

Then people ask: How far will Potawatomi’s leaders go to hurt a fellow Wisconsin tribe, lose jobs and destroy economic opportunities for the Badger State – all in the name of keeping their own off-reservation casino competition-free?

We don’t know how far they’ll go, but we can tell you how far they’ve already gone. As far as at least $5.4 million can take them.

Check out “A Litany of Greed,” a new detailed, white paper analysis of the Forest County Potawatomi Community’s relentless and costly fight to stifle competition and preserve the monopoly its Milwaukee casino has held for nearly two decades. We’ve broken down Potawatomi’s anti-competition agenda for the past four years, added supporting materials and examples as backup, and calculated the millions upon millions of dollars Potawatomi leaders have already funneled into efforts to kill the Kenosha casino and keep hold of their monopoly.

The $5,415,284 total is shameful – that’s enough money to educate more than 500 Wisconsin public school students for one year, or buy a year’s worth of food stamps for nearly 2,500 hungry Wisconsin families. And as the Kenosha casino proposal continues to make steady progress (and it does), one can only anticipate Potawatomi’s battle against competition will become even more intense, and more expensive. In fact, now that the budget matter is resolved in Madison, we’ve heard rumblings that Potawatomi’s anti-competition battle will rev up once again.

Competition is at the heart of a strong economy and respect for healthy business competition is part of our state’s proud, progressive heritage. (Fightin’ Bob hated monopolies!) But Potawatomi’s leaders don’t seem to care. As “A Litany of Greed” reveals, Potawatomi’s anti-competition activities are part of an expensive and sophisticated campaign of misinformation, hypocrisy and hubris. The sole goal is to eliminate competition – and Southeast Wisconsin and the entire state will be hurt if Potawatomi succeeds.

Take a look.

Denounce Potawatomi’s pro-monopoly tactics and support free and fair competition for Wisconsin by signing the online petition.

Legislative Audit Bureau report underscores how casino competition can benefit Wisconsin’s economy

The Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau recently released an in-depth report on the state Division of Gaming that revealed the State of Wisconsin saw a budget boost of more than $118 million from Indian gaming in fiscal 2005-2006 alone. Among other things, it shows that Governor Doyle is doing a good job making sure tribal gaming benefits the State of Wisconsin.

What’s really interesting is that had the Kenosha casino been operational during that time frame, the state would have likely seen about $40 million more during that fiscal period – enough to educate more than 3,700 Wisconsin public school children – as because of casino competition.

As part of their fight to stamp out competition, the Forest County Potawatomi like to brag that they contribute more to the State of Wisconsin annually than any other Indian tribe or Wisconsin business. A couple of years ago, they built a huge ad campaign around that very premise.

But as usual, the monopoly-focused Potawatomi only told part of the story. They completely skipped an important detail – that if the Kenosha casino becomes a reality, the Menominee will pay the state even more than the Potawatomi. In their ads, the Potawatomi boasted that they’d give $1 billion to Wisconsin over the next 25 years. Well, with the Kenosha casino in place, the Menominee would give $2 billion in the same time period. In other words, real casino competition in the region would result in $3 billion total to help educate Wisconsin children, care for Wisconsin seniors, strengthen Wisconsin businesses and make our state a better place. One can only imagine the positive impact that extra money would have had on our state’s budget.

By focusing on themselves instead of the big picture, Potawatomi’s leaders are cheating Wisconsin out of hundreds of millions of dollars, thousands of new jobs and other much-needed economic resources. Potawatomi’s fight against competition isn’t just hurting the Menominee – a very large, very poor Wisconsin tribe. It’s hurting the entire state and Wisconsin’s economic future.

Competition is a fact of life in the business world. Our hope is that Potawatomi’s leaders will soon recognize that reality and embrace the tremendous opportunity real casino competition will bring to Wisconsin. The LAB report is proof of competition’s positive economic potential.

Sign the online petition to help bring real casino competition – and its related economic benefits – to Wisconsin.