Dances with Tribal Dollars

Surely by now, Jim Doyle has earned an honorary Native American Indian name.

"Dances with Tribal Dollars" would be a good fit.

Here are some more options:

"Hands in Tribes' Deep Pockets"

"Skunk Hungry for Cash"

"Bald Bear Selling Contracts"

"Dirty Money Running River"

"Crazy Can Be Bought"

"Telling Bull"

The possibilites are endless.

In their column in Sunday's Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Cary Spivak and Dan Bice provide some additional information on the extent of Jim Doyle's tribal connections.

They are massive.

The question: "Is it Indian groups ensuring 'good government' or casino interests buying an election?"

Spivak and Bice write:

Where there's a will, there's a way.

And Indian tribes here and elsewhere have found yet another way to help out Gov. Jim Doyle's re-election efforts.

Federal records show three tribes - the Mohegans in Connecticut and the Potawatomi and Oneida in Wisconsin - have poured $50,000 into the state Democratic Party's federal account in the past year.

That's on top of all the money that tribe members and others have given directly and indirectly to help ensure that the first-term Democrat wins a second term.

Here is the holier-than-thou explanation for the donations from the spokesman for the Mohegan tribe, which hopes to manage the $808 million off-reservation casino that is being proposed for Kenosha:

"They want to make sure that there is good government in Wisconsin," said Evan Zeppos, "and they think by supporting this fund they can help to ensure that."

A case could be made that the Potawatomi and Oneida have an interest in "good government in Wisconsin," albeit a weak one.

The Mohegans, however, are another story. They're in Connecticut. I would like Zeppos to explain why that tribe feels it's necessary to ensure "good government" for Wisconsinites, meaning a "Doyle government."

It's ridiculous to suggest that the Mohegans' donations aren't related to their wish to manage the $808 million casino in Kenosha. Of course, they're trying to buy their way in by buying off Doyle.

Tribal giving is nothing new in Wisconsin. Three tribes dumped $725,000 into the coffers of the Democratic National Committee, which then sent the dough back to the state to help out Doyle. He then signed generous compacts deals - which have since been tossed out by the courts - which would have allowed tribal casinos to continue operating here for perpetuity.

Party officials brushed off questions of whether the Mohegans were using money to get on Doyle's good side. The governor has the final say on whether the Kenosha casino proposal will become a reality.

"I don't know what their intent is, except to help the Democratic Party of Wisconsin to turn out Democratic voters," said Michael Murphy, the party's top staffer. "Their intent is to turn out Democratic voters in the 2006 election."

As in the folks who will vote to keep Doyle in office.

I don't know how Zeppos and Murphy can claim that the tribes aren't trying to buy the election.

The concerned citizen stuff doesn't fly, especially with the Mohegans.

Clearly, the tribe is trying to buy influence with Doyle.

Actually, it's a smart move. Doyle can be bought. The Mohegans know that.