Connecticut’s two federally recognized Native American tribes say they’re disappointed by a ruling that puts a hitch in their plan to open a new casino in East Windsor, but they’ll keep pushing for the project.
The Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes want to jointly run a casino in the small Connecticut town just a few miles from MGM’s new casino in Springfield, Massachusetts. A U.S. district judge ruled over the weekend the tribes don’t have legal standing to force federal regulators to approve changes in their compacts to allow the casino.
A spokesperson for the tribes says if they can’t compete with MGM’s Springfield casino, then thousands of people will lose their jobs and the state will lose millions in revenue. The tribes currently operate Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun. They say they’ll fight the ruling.
MGM, which wants to build a casino in Bridgeport, called the ruling a clear rejection of the tribes' efforts to obtain a no-bid commercial casino license.
