IS IT TRUE APRIL 3, 2019

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We hope that today’s “IS IT TRUE” will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way?

IS IT TRUE that the political deal made to enable one of the Gary, Indiana casinos to move to a location in Terre Haute there was a provision that was going to pay the City of Evansville a sum of $6 million to compensate us for the anticipated loss of business from people who will choose the new Terre Haute casino because of location?

IS IT TRUE the latest version of the political deal has removed that $6 million for City of Evansville that would put a lot of cash into the tax coffers of the City of Evansville? …the casino at French Lick was scheduled to get $2.5 million over several years if this deal passes and that has not changed?

IS IT TRUE the CCO does not understand how something that had been calculated and agreed to by elected public officials can be cast aside so easily?…the CCO feels that some of the local people in a positions of political power like Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke, Ways and Means member-State Representative Hollie Sullivan, Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch from Vanderburgh County and Governor Eric Holcomb should intervene and get that $6 million that was originally supposed to be allocated back to  the City of Evansville? …”it’s a well-known fact that the Governor has final say over the plans to move two Gary casinos to more lucrative locations”?  …if the legislature eliminates the provision of Evansville receiving the $6 million dollars the Governor can veto the actions taken by the State Legislative body?

IS IT TRUE according to the Indy Star the Chairman and CEO of Spectacle Entertainment, Rod Ratcliff have contributed more than $1 million to the Republican Governors Association since 2016?   ..the Indy Star reported that the RGA became a financial lifeline for Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb in 2016 after his campaign got a late start and was then restricted from accessing the campaign funds of his predecessor, now-Vice President Mike Pence?

IS IT TRUE the Indy Star also reported: “that since 2016, Rod Ratcliff’s companies have given $577,500 to the Republican State Leadership Committee, a national organization that helps down-ballot statewide and legislative candidates”?  …”this group reportedly gave more than $550,000 to the campaigns of Holcomb’s lieutenant governor, Suzanne Crouch, and the Indiana House Republican Campaign Committee, which is led by House Speaker Brian Bosma”?

IS IT TRUE that our readers feel when elected officials get a backdoor $500,000 political contributions that it should be considered illegal? …as we all know, it looks like politicians and real people have two sets of laws?  … it looks like politicians can legally get away with things that regular people and businesses can’t?

IS IT TRUE over the year’s governmental watchdogs have expressed concerns that amendments made to casino gaming laws were seemingly motivated by corporations or individuals giving donations to the right political person or political group? …we wonder why hasn’t one of these governmental watchdog groups hasn’t asked the proper enforcement authorities to look into any possible ethical wrongdoing in anyone in elected office or the gaming business?

IS IT TRUE it was announced yesterday by the Indiana Firebird-Evansville head football coach Nick Hart that there will not be an Indiana Firebirds indoor football team at the Ford Center this year?  …all we can say to the never tested coach of the Indiana Firebirds-Evansville Nick Hart is why didn’t he realize that the NGL was a “no go” a long time ago?   … Coach Hart should have gotten a hint that the NGL was in trouble when the home and practice uniforms were never ordered, when the home games playing turf was never ordered, when the arrangement to house his out-of-town players during the season never happened, when the management of the Ford Center didn’t post the schedule of games to be played at Ford Center and most important was why wasn’t he and other employees of the NGL weren’t paid for their services?

IS IT TRUE  the news that the Indiana Firebirds-Evansville will not be playing at the Ford Center this year is no surprise to the City-County Observer and our readers because we been projecting this news for several months?  …looks like the CEO of the Ford Center and our City officials have egg on their faces because they didn’t properly vent this proposed arena football deal?  …they could have saved face if they only read the numerous articles we published during the last several months concerning the legal and financial challenges that the National Gridiron Football Leauge were experiencing?

IS IT TRUE that the newly appointed Evansville Region Representative of the United States Senator Mike Braun is doing a credible job?  …Steven W. Hammer is working day and night carrying the message that the United States Senator from Indiana Mike Braun is a man of his word by following through with his campaign promises?  …we give five  (5) cheers to Steve Hammer and the United States Senator Mike Braun?

IS IT TRUE that Lori Lightfoot, a former U.S. attorney, has been elected Mayor of Chicago? …she will be the first black woman and first openly gay person to lead the nation’s third-largest city?  …Lightfoot beat Toni Preckwinkle, also a black female candidate, in the runoff election Tuesday?   …the two competed after emerging as the top vote-getters among a record 14 candidates in the mayoral election in February?

Todays “Readers Poll” question is: If your an elected official and someone gives your campaign $500,000 what do you feel they expect you to do from them?

Please go to our link of our media partner Channel 44 News located in the upper right-hand corner of the City-County Observer so you can get the up-to-date news, weather, and sports. We are pleased to provide obituaries from several area funeral homes at no costs.  Over the next several weeks we shall be adding additional obituaries from other local funeral homes.  Please scroll down the paper and you shall see a listing of them.

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FOOTNOTE:  Any comments posted in this column do not represent the views or opinions of the City-County Observer or our advertisers.”READERS FORUM” 

 

 

 

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13 COMMENTS

  1. When the riverboat first came to Evansville it was promised over and over again that the funds generated for the City would be used for critical funding. Things like infrastructure, public safety, and the like. But in the passing years, that has evaporated to the point that City leadership treats the riverboat funding as more of a slush fund to make up for losses that should have been expected by Evansville.

    Now we are faced with competition in our region that is apparently being done thru political payoffs at the highest level. And what have we heard from our City leaders?

    This is annoying on multiple levels, not the least being that compensation for this would have resulted in a $6 million reimbursement for the State ramming this competition into Terre Haute thru political palm greasing, yet once again the Legislature and Marion County does not give a damn about Evansville because we are really located in Kentucky in their minds. You would think City leaders and our Legislative delegation would have protested this, yet

    • Wilson, spot on. Riverboat funds were to be used for infrastructure and public safety, not to compensate for deficit spending. Why the City and County leaders aren’t fighting like wounded badgers for the $6,000,000 for estimated lost revenues, is mind-boggling.

  2. Why hasn’t the City Council called the mayor and the head of our casino in to find out first, does it matter that Terre Haute may get a casino and second, what are you doing about it?

    If not the City Council, then the County Commissioners should call them in

    • I disagree on this one. It’s a GOOD thing the City of Evansville isn’t getting $6 million more to blow on more waste. They are not entitled to any other casino’s money. It’s called competion and free markets. The government has no business extorting casinos for their money in the name of some kind of safety reasoning that goes above me.

      • When the topic is City waste and mismanagement, the usual suspect is Evansville Dept of Metropolitan Development. Remember the $600,000 purchase of a small parking lot for the McCurdy. Now the $16+ million boondoggle for N. Main bike path and the $535,000 purchase of the old CVS on N. Main.

  3. I disagree. It’s a GOOD thing the City of Evansville isn’t getting $6 million more to blow on more waste. They are not entitled to any other casino’s money. It’s called competion and free markets. The government has no business extorting casinos for their money in the name of some kind of safety reasoning that goes above me.

  4. Terre Haute’s never really been too smart. They might accept a National Gridiron League team, perhaps the never-off-the-ground Indiana Firebirds, as compensation for giving up their quest for part of the Indiana gambling dollar.

  5. Behind and beyond the Mueller Investigation
    By Rick Hayes

    Had Hillary Clinton done what she was supposed to do and won the 2016 presidential election, the American people would never have known about the “dossier,” the FISA court, Christopher Steele, or Carter Page.

    Hillary and Hillary alone had to win, but she didn’t, and so a true conspiracy to overthrow a duly elected President of The United States commenced. By deciding to take part in the coup attempt, senior members in the FBI and DoJ risked going to prison for up to 20 years according to 18 U.S. Code § 2385 — advocating the overthrow of government. But not even a deep hatred for Trump would have been enough incentive for them to consider such a thing….

    So why was it so imperative that Hillary had to be the next president that the DNC threw fellow Democrat candidate Bernie Sanders under the bus? That the FBI would admit that she committed several crimes with her private server but chose not to indict her? And that a two-year-long careless investigation hoax and worldwide embarrassment was allowed to happen?

    It wasn’t about who Trump was — it was all about what Trump promised. It was about the survivability of the swamp.

    From the very start, the Obama presidency focused on crushing conservative thought and detaching the country from the Constitution. Undermining the 2nd Amendment with Fast and Furious, forcing Americans to purchase a product they didn’t want with ObamaCare and preventing conservatives from forming support networks by unleashing the power of the IRS against them. His policies greatly increased the number of Americans on food stamps and doubled the national debt to $20 trillion. And for this, the propaganda media labeled him the greatest president ever because, in their anti-American world, he was. So it was no surprise that Obama sided with America’s sworn enemies by brokering the disastrous one-sided Iran Deal and assisting the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.

    The swamp had to make sure the American people never found out about the little and big names behind the hundreds of crimes committed in order to advance Obama’s and the media’s anti-American agenda.

    And as president, Hillary would do just that. She would make sure the changes made by the Obama administration in dismantling American values would continue, and the illegal tactics used would remain buried. For this accommodation, Hillary would now be able to accelerate the unabated flow of cash from all corners of the globe into the Clinton Foundation coffers.

    It was a sweet deal, but it all ended the moment when Trump hit 270 electoral votes. And as we know, Hell froze over, pigs began to fly, and Trump entered the Oval Office, and for the first time in their political careers, Obama, Clinton, and members of the swamp contemplated the real possibility of prosecution….

    On March 22, 2019, the bottom fell out of the last vestiges of the coverup as Mueller handed his report absent any proof of Trump/Russian collusion to new Attorney General William Barr. But only part of the most insidious abuse of power in Americas’ history had been dealt with.

    History shows us that what goes unpunished becomes emboldened and multiplies. If this country truly wants to recover, to gain some semblance of normalcy and reclaim the rule of law, then it is imperative that all the conspirators involved in this shocking and despicable grab for power must be held accountable. President Trump stated, “This must never happen to another President.” the only way to ensure that hope is to seek prosecution. To punish those involved….

    Read more: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2019/04/behind_and_beyond_the_mueller_investigation.html#ixzz5k2sIEBJw
    Follow us: @AmericanThinker on Twitter | AmericanThinker on Facebook

  6. Terre Haute has never been very smart. They might accept a National Gridiron League team, perhaps even the failed-before-it-started Indiana Firebirds, as compensation for giving up their quest for part of the Indiana gambling dollar.

  7. The Democrats in the DC swamp deny there is southern border crisis, Texas says differently. But to the elitist liberal mind, how could Texas possibly know more about the Mexican border than they do:

    The Texas Senate passed a resolution Tuesday afternoon calling the “crisis at the Texas-Mexico International Border an emergency.” The resolution calls on Congress to take action and supports President Donald Trump’s recent emergency declaration.

    https://www.breitbart.com/border/2019/04/03/texas-senate-crisis-at-mexican-border-is-an-emergency/

  8. An article from the IndyStar has an interesting view on this subject of the Terre Haute casino move. Terre Haute businessman Greg Gibson, a principal investor in a group that intends to acquire two Gary-based Indiana casino licenses, says Terre Haute tops his list of potential locations. Gibson, along with Rod Ratcliff, former chairman and CEO of Centaur Gaming, are the lead owners of Spectacle Entertainment. Current state law states that both casino licenses are to be located in Gary on Lake Michigan

    “It is Spectacle’s hope that in regard to one license, the Indiana legislature permits it to be located anywhere in the city limits of Gary. With regard to the second license, it is Spectacle’s hope to move it out of Gary. That will be up to the Indiana General Assembly to decide if and how and when that process takes place” is a statement from John Keller, general counsel for Spectacle Entertainment

    Relocating a casino is not something that is common for Indiana. While ownership transfers are common, no license has been relocated within the state since the mid 1990s

    Indiana gaming analyst Ed Feigenbaum (editor of Indiana Gaming Insight) said having a potential option to move a second license “elsewhere is a huge thing”

    “That second license in a different location could be worth many hundreds of millions of dollars over a period of time if they were to move that second license and operate with that second license, or if they are granted the ability to convey that license to a second operator, they could get a windfall up front from that second license”

    Feigenbaum said moving a Majestic Star Casino site would face obstacles, including opposition from some other casino operators and state representatives with casinos in their legislative districts

    “Any kind of potential move to Terre Haute would probably be viewed askance by the legislators that are favorable toward the French Lick Casino, and opposition form Evansville”

    If the license is moved, legislators may determine the license should be up for bid, but that could lead to many other entities seeking change. If Spectacle does intend to move a casino license to Terre Haute, it would take action by the state legislature

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