JustRalph
06-17-2010, 06:31 PM
http://hotair.com/archives/2010/06/17/why-did-54-million-in-porkulus-go-to-one-of-the-most-successful-indian-casinos/
With the support of Sen. Chris Dodd, D.-Conn., the federal government has awarded $54 million to Connecticut’s politically well-connected Mohegan Indian tribe, which operates one of the highest grossing casinos in the U.S.
The tribe runs the sprawling Mohegan Sun casino, halfway between New York City andBoston, which earned more than $1.3 billion in gross revenues in 2009. Each tribe member receives a cut of the profits, a number a tribal official said was “less than $30,000″ per capita per year. The stimulus money is a loan from a U.S. Department of Agriculture rural development program that is meant to help communities of less than 20,000 people that have been “unable to obtain other credit at reasonable rates and terms and are unable to finance the proposed project from their own resources.”
The $54 million loan represents more than one-third of the $167.8 million allocated by the USDA in the latest wave of stimulus funding for its rural development program.The loan is just part of $74 million in loans directed to the Mohegans by the USDA for the construction of a community center and tribal government building.
USDA officials said that part of their consideration in moving forward with the project was the tribe’s continued challenge in obtaining credit because of the ongoing economic crisis.
With the support of Sen. Chris Dodd, D.-Conn., the federal government has awarded $54 million to Connecticut’s politically well-connected Mohegan Indian tribe, which operates one of the highest grossing casinos in the U.S.
The tribe runs the sprawling Mohegan Sun casino, halfway between New York City andBoston, which earned more than $1.3 billion in gross revenues in 2009. Each tribe member receives a cut of the profits, a number a tribal official said was “less than $30,000″ per capita per year. The stimulus money is a loan from a U.S. Department of Agriculture rural development program that is meant to help communities of less than 20,000 people that have been “unable to obtain other credit at reasonable rates and terms and are unable to finance the proposed project from their own resources.”
The $54 million loan represents more than one-third of the $167.8 million allocated by the USDA in the latest wave of stimulus funding for its rural development program.The loan is just part of $74 million in loans directed to the Mohegans by the USDA for the construction of a community center and tribal government building.
USDA officials said that part of their consideration in moving forward with the project was the tribe’s continued challenge in obtaining credit because of the ongoing economic crisis.