Gov. Tim Pawlenty proposed a state-tribal partnership on casino gambling because he said he wanted to bring fairness to the gambling issue. Now that another tribe says it wants no part of the latest casino plan, the question is fairness to whom? First the Leech Lake Band opted out. Now it's Red Lake. This is from the Pioneer Press story:

On Monday, the tribal council of the Red Lake Chippewa voted unanimously against joining the Minnesota Lottery and the owners of Canterbury Park racetrack in Pawlenty's latest gambling plan, which calls for two casinos to be built at the track in Shakopee.

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, which said April 18 that it wanted no part of a gambling deal that would allow a non-Indian business — Canterbury — to operate a casino, reaffirmed that decision Monday.

But the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, the third American Indian tribe that Pawlenty has been negotiating with, is willing to go forward and seek legislative approval for the two-casino gambling package at Canterbury, a tribal official said.

Pawlenty also is committed to pursuing the two-casino plan with White Earth and Canterbury, according to Brian McClung, a spokesman for the governor.

McClung and others in the administration say combining the casino plans at Canterbury builds support for the deal at the Capitol. But at some point won't people ask why the racetrack owners are more deserving of a casino windfall than two of the poorest Indian tribes in the state? Red Lake officials certainly are, according to the Star Tribune:

Red Lake Tribal Treasurer Darrell Seki Sr. said the Red Lake Tribal Council voted 9 to 0 in part because some members balked at the idea of participating in a slot machine deal in which the tribe would join a non-Indian business in competing against Mystic Lake Casino in nearby Prior Lake. In addition to council members, the meeting included about a half dozen hereditary chiefs and a couple of dozen tribal members, he said.

"That's not one of the things we want to do," Seki said. "They're an Indian nation; we wouldn't want to ... put one two miles away. That was never our intention."

He said some Tribal Council members worried that a deal with Canterbury would encourage proposals for slots in bars or felt that the tribe shouldn't be helping out the owners of Canterbury Park racetrack.

Pawlenty's spokesman McClung says the White Earth band represents about 45 percent of the state's Indians, and that the three tribes together represent 85 percent. Gambling supporters say the negotiating isn't over yet, and that it's unfair to judge the result until a final agreement is reached.

Speaking of agreements, the goveror is endorsing the Twins-Hennepin County stadium plan...sort of. MPR's Michael Khoo has that story:

Before Hennepin County can levy the proposed stadium tax, lawmakers and Gov. Tim Pawlenty will have to give permission. And a key part of the debate will turn on whether county voters are able to voice their preferences in a referendum -- or whether the county board can impose the tax at its own discretion.

The team and the county say a county-wide vote will scuttle the deal. They argue that board members, as elected representatives, should have the authority to make tax decisions with a direct citizen vote. And Pawlenty, who has rejected any new state tax increases and has championed citizen referendums, says he won't rule anything out.

"I would definitely prefer a referendum. But I want to give the Twins and Hennepin County a fair chance to sell this at the Legislature, so we're not going to slam the door shut on a scenario where the Hennepin County Board decides whether there's a referendum or not," he said.

Lawmakers must also have an image problem to consider. With lawmakers considering reductions in state health care programs, Sen. John Marty, DFL-Roseville, wonders why anyone would consider imposing a tax for professional baseball. And he rejects the argument that the tax is too minor for most consumers to notice.

"If it's hardly noticeable, why don't we use that to fund MinnesotaCare? But the point is is does raise real money, significant money, money that we could be using and should be using for meeting other needs," he said.

Of course no one, including Marty, has proposed a 0.15 percent Hennepin County sales tax to fund MinnesotaCare, but that hardly matters now. There's a stadium debate going on!