08:32 AM CST on Friday, April 1, 2005

By LEE McGUIRE / KVUE News

The head of the state's Republican party joined forces Thursday with the leader of the Democratic party to fight the controversial issue of gambling.

It's a tempting source of money for a cash-starved budget. But is it worth taking a chance on lady luck?

Expanding gambling would bring in about $1 billion a year. That money would likely go to schools.

But for the first time since this issue first cropped up a year ago, there's a resounding no from some big names on opposite sides of the political spectrum.

"We're being asked to gamble away our children's future in the biggest con game of all time," said Tina Benkiser, the chairman of the Republican Party of Texas.

Benkiser and Texas Democratic Party Chairman Charles Soechting teamed up against the legalization of gambling.

Video lottery terminals, a form of electronic slot machines, are again up for debate in the Texas Legislature. Legalizing them would bring in more than $1 billion a year in tax revenue. It would also require a public vote and 100 votes in the Texas House. That's a supermajority that even the House speaker says is unlikely.

But horse race tracks and breeders want the machines because they would quickly inject billions into the sagging racing industry.

The bi-partisan nature of the rally, and the Republican Party's presence puts Gov. Rick Perry in a tough position. During last year's school finance special session, he proposed legalizing video lottery terminals to bring in new tax dollars and put an end the illegal 8 liner industry.

Since then, he's clarified his message.

"I don't think gambling's healthy. I think there's a clear cost to society with gambling," Perry said. "The question is, are we gonna have 8 liners or are we gonna have VLTs or are we gonna have none? I think the idea that we're gonna have no gambling in the state of Texas is a fairy tale."

Supporters of a gambling expansion released a study Thursday from the Perryman Group that says legalizing VLTs would create 26,000 jobs, and raise $1.2 billion in tax revenue a year.