Lawmakers call for probe on Connecticut casino

Members of Connecticut’s US congressional delegation want to investigate the DoI decision on the MMCT casino delay.

US.- Connecticut’s two federally recognised tribes – the Mashantucket Pequot and the Mohegan – have accused the Department of the Interior (DoI) of holding up their joint project for a new casino in the state. As a result, members of Connecticut’s U.S. congressional delegation are calling for an investigation into the DoI and their decisions regarding the tribal project.

Among those pushing the investigation is US Senator Chris Murphy, along with Senator Richard Blumenthal and Representatives John Larson and Joe Courtney. According to Sen. Murphy, the DoI has recently met with MGM lobbyists but not with representatives for the tribes. “That’s not the mission of the Department of the Interior. The Department of the Interior is supposed to be looking out for the best interests of tribes, not the best interests of Las Vegas billion-dollar casinos,” he fired.

Sen. Murphy is clearly targeting MGM’s intention to obtain a casino license in the Bridgeport area. The casino giant has been lobbying for quite some time now and it even – unsuccessfully – sued Connecticut in 2016, when it challenged the tribes’ right to build new casinos on non-tribal land.