Democratic gubernatorial nominee Bill White said today he does not support the legalization of slot machines and does not think Texas should legalize casinos across the state.
“I don’t think the State of Texas should be promoting gambling and something for nothing,” White said.
White said he does not want to get distracted from issues such as education and workforce development and developing a long-term transportation plan for the state.
You are all familiar with my feelings about expanded gambling in Texas, which ranges from ambivalence to general dislike. Had White come out in favor of more gambling, which as Marc Campos notes would put him more in line with his supporters in the Lege, I can’t say I’d have been okay with that, but I would not have cared that much. Casinos and slot machines are just not that high on my priority list one way or the other. I do think that White is correct to emphasize those other issues, and I hope that will help to remind people that even if expanded gambling were a sure thing for adoption next year, it still wouldn’t affect the current budget situation. Focus on that, and on fixing those real problems we face in education, employment, and transportation, and then we can talk about stuff like this.
Mr. White will not get my vote. Texas could use the money being spent in Louisiana. The casinos are at least 75% Texans.