Following major snags in negotiations between the Seminole Indians and Governor Charlie Crist to bring Class III casino gambling into Florida, U.S. Interior Department officials have expressed that Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne will give the Seminole Tribe more gambling freedoms if the State of Florida fails to work out yet another deal with the tribe. Kempthorne has been quiet up until now - giving Governor Crist the freedom to work out a deal. However, following recent comments from Crist that a compact may fall apart due to warnings from GOP leaders not in support of bringing Class III casino gambling into Florida, Secretary Kempthorne stepped up to give a warning of his own.

On Monday, House Speaker Marco Rubio wrote a letter to Governor Crist, demanding that State lawmakers be given the final word on approving or rejecting a compact made between Governor Crist and the Seminole tribe. Rubio also warned that if the compact permits Class III gaming, meaning table games and anything other than what is currently permitted in the State of Florida, GOP leaders would vote against it. Although Crist said wants to work with casino gaming legislators, he showed signs he might be bowing down to pressure from the right.

The Interior Department, sensing what was taking place, decided it was nigh time to law down the law. And according to Federal law, tribes are entitled to offer any casino game that is sanctioned elsewhere by the State. Considering that three Broward racetracks now offer Las Vegas style casino slot machines (passed into law by voter referendum), the Seminole tribe is technically entitled to offer the same at all of their seven Florida casinos. If a compact falls apart - a compact which the Seminole's apparently want to permit Class III gaming - the State of Florida would lose out on billions of gambling tax revenue, which they have already lost out on under the anti-gambling stronghold of Governor Bush.