“I am but a pawn in a highest-stakes chess games played by giants in international banking and high finance. If this committee is looking for the grandmaster, it is not me. The line runs much higher and involves persons with much more clout and authority than a simple bank manager with modest capabilities has.”
—Maia Santos-Deguito, former branch manager, Rizal Commercial Banking Corp., who says she had no knowledge of a money-laundering scheme that resulted in the theft of $81 million from Bangladesh Bank and funneled through the bank
“If their project is confirmed in Cyprus, it is likely for them to give up BCN World. The danger of them pulling out is real.”
—Pere Granados, mayor, Salou, Spain, who fears that Melco International and Hard Rock will pull out of BCN World if they win the bidding war in Cyprus
“If they couldn’t steal from the racetrack, they would have closed it long ago.”
—Bilal Shafwan, cabbie and patron of Beirut Hippodrome, whose legendary horse track attracts few fans these days; he said he’ll keep betting “because I’m a dupe”
“Prosperity not persecution. We are building a modern tribal nation.”
— Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell celebrating the groundbreaking for the tribe’s First Light Resort & Casino in Taunton, Massachusetts
“Every tribal leader across the nation should be deeply concerned about the principle being suggested by this effort, namely allowing the legislatures and citizens of all 50 states to weigh in on tribal rights, application of laws differently among tribes and that established federal gaming law. . .”
— Chairman Maryann McGovran of the North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians of California criticizing efforts by California Congressman Doug LaMalfa, to sponsor a bill to bypass the Bureau of Indian Affairs and prevent a casino from being allowed on the tribe’s off reservation land
“While some tribes have been able to open new gaming facilities on land taken into trust, it can be a lengthy, costly, contentious process with no guarantee of success.”
— Dr. Alan Meister, writing in the 2016 Casino City Indian Gaming IndustryReport about the number of applications to put land into trust by the federal government
“On March Madness, 97 percent of bets are made in the illegal market. What’s abundantly clear is how popular betting on sports has become. What’s also clear is that America’s prohibition, which pushes fans to engage in what’s technically illicit activity, is failing.”
—American Gaming Association President and CEO Geoff Freeman, commenting that the prevalence of betting on March Madness demonstrates the failure of the U.S. sports betting ban
“It’s going to be very definitive. The day they open, life around here will change. All of a sudden in the Washington menu is gaming through a great resort like MGM. They will bring entertainment that has never been here. Tell me the last time there’s been a boxing match in the Washington area.”
—Developer Jon Peterson, who along with his father Milt Peterson opened the National Harbor mixed-use development on the Potomac River in Maryland eight years ago, to the Washington Post on the coming of MGM’s resort casino to the development
“He is an honorable person, and I don’t believe he’s ever been an office-holder in Atlantic City. I don’t remember Donald being mayor or on the (city) council.”
—New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, defending friend and potential running mate in the presidential election, Donald Trump, against charges Trump contributed to the downfall of Atlantic City—blaming the resort’s mess on local officials
