Desperate to win Congressional approval of a third casino (this one in Port Huron 350-miles away from the two already in operation on the tribe’s Brimley area Reservation) Bay Mills Indian Community tribal leaders and their developer Michael Malik are hoping to devise some stealth strategy to slip through an Act of Congress needed as part of approvals for their off-reservation casino scheme without ever showing up on opponents’ radar screens.
As reported in the Bay Mills News:
12/14/2006
Charlotte Beach land dispute remains unsettled
Tribe’s agreement still in need of ratification from U.S. Congress
"So in order for Bay Mills to relinquish any interest it has in the Charlotte Beach land, we need an Act of Congress," said [tribal chair Jeff] Parker … One of the problems with going to Congress to get this settlement ratified is that the tribe has met considerable opposition in the matter. From the City of Detroit, to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe in Mount Pleasant, as well as other tribes … During the recent lame duck session of Congress the tribe had been working to get the land claim ratified, without notifying the opposition that something was going on … "We didn't want to forewarn them and get them to get their forces to rally and defeat us." Parker went on to refute the speculation that the tribe is hiding issues from the membership by not publishing information on specific issues…
The irony is that those behind the Bay Mills Tribe’s casino plan have damned other Michigan tribe’s and politicians exploiting those tribes' unfortunate business relationships with former lobbyist Jack Abramoff; and yet Michael J. Malik, Sr., Tom Shields and other white men behind (bankrolling) the Port Huron proposal aren’t ashamed of using Abramoff-like tactics themselves.
This two-faced effort should not only be a red-flag for those who oppose the Bay Mills Tribe’s Port Huron proposal but also those concerned about any projects being bankrolled by Detroit casino syndicators Michael J. Malik, Sr., Mrs. Marian Ilitch and their friends.
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