A Christmas Carol, Vegas style

Las Vegas has its very own Ebenezer Scrooge this year and his name is Virgin Las Vegas President Cliff Atkinson. With his Canadian private equity overlords, he going full Ebenezer on the many Bob Cratchits who toil for him. He’s begrudging them their lump of coal by offering paltry raises which would put them in a literally substandard position vis-a-vis their Las Vegas Strip brethren. Small wonder Atkinson talks about repositioning Virgin LV as a locals casino: He wants to spend Sam’s Town money for a Strip-adjacent resort. Perhaps Cliff got knocked on the head and woke up thinking he was operating Casino Royale. He’s certainly in the running to be Margaret Elardi‘s spiritual heir.

But what is Atkinson’s rank offense, apart from poor-mouthing his union-repped employees? In a corporate memo, he asks workers: “I have been threatened with deportation and other bad consequences if I come to work—can any of those things happen to me?” It’s the casino’s roundabout way of saying: A) We know who you are; B) We know you’re here illegally; C) We can rat you out to la migra if we like. It’s not just reprehensible that Virgin is stooping to this kind of fearmongering, it’s doubly vile that it’s decided to hitch a ride on the shameful wave of xenophobia sweeping the country. If the INS indeed raids Las Vegas casinos, as has been bruited, we wouldn’t be surprised if Atkinson rolls out the red carpet for them.

In his basic rules of propaganda, Josef Goebbels instructs his disciples to always accuse the other side of doing that of which you are culpable (a now-familiar political tactic in the United States). It would appear that Atkinson is projecting onto the Culinary Union his own fear-mongering. The union denies engaging in scare tactics, for what it’s worth, and we only have Virgin’s word that this is happening. There would be few better ways to divide and conquer the strikers than by obliquely threatening them with the new federal administration’s wrath. The malign desire to “ethnically cleanse” the Vegas melting pot has few adherents in the casino industry (it would be economically calamitous, for starters) other than Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo (R). But with Atkinson using the specter of deportation to club his workforce into submission, there is at least one black sheep in Big Gaming’s family.

Jottings: Rapper, heal thyself! Musical offender Lil Baby (aka Dominique Armani Jones) is well-named, judging by some immature behavior. He claims to have lost as much as $9 million in a single day, gambling at unspecified venues. Now he wants to entire casino industry to exclude him. Ever heard of self-exclusion, friend? Or self-control? This fool and his money were parted swiftly indeed … American Gaming Association prexy Bill Miller (above) is downright giddy about the coming year. Evidently he didn’t get the memo that it’s likely to bring tariffs, greater inflation and the Orwellian Fair Tax Act‘s resurrection (imposing a regressive, 30% sales tax on Americans). None of that unholy trinity would bode well for John Q. Public‘s gambling budget. Miller needs to swap out those rose-colored contact lenses he evidently wears … Caesars Entertainment has done it again: Caesars Virginia delivered fewer jobs and amenities than initially promised, at a higher cost ($650 million) than planned. Judging by the choice of Dennis Rodman to make the first bet, Caesars is aiming for a lowlife clientele … New Hampshire is a hotbed of casinos, which masquerade as charitable enterprises, even though 55% of the revenue is retained by the owner (in this case, Peninsula Pacific) and 10% goes to the Granite State. The newest is a slot parlor in Lebanon that offers 26 machines, along with jobs for 80 souls. Bigger gaming outfits, like Full House Resorts, are getting wise to the money to be made there and are starting to probe New Hampshire for targets of opportunity … It has yet to be licensed but that’s not stopping Bossier City Live from loading 1,000-plus slot machines on its $270 million casino floor. (Hmmm, Caesars could take a budgetary lesson from Cordish Gaming.) It keeps being liked to a Las Vegas product, which may be setting customers up for disappointment …

Kudos to Venelazzo and owner Apollo Management for doing right by employees, gracing them with end-of-year bonuses of as much as $1,250 apiece. It’s an enlightened way to share success with the people who make it possible. Private equity has generally been disastrous to gaming but Apollo appears to have learned from its Caesars Entertainment debacle and is doing right by Sheldon Adelson‘s legacy property. There was a major salary dump this fall, but the cost-cutting scythe felled only C-suite employees, generally long-tenured ones with hefty paychecks … American society has generally gone cashless but casinos have not. “It’s as if the gaming industry is stuck in a pre-21^st century time warp,” reports Rege Behe. Ironically, one of the few cashless standouts is troubled Resorts World Las Vegas, a new casino that’s not encrusted with the barnacles of tradition … A quarter-century ago, The Resort at Summerlin debuted at a cost that nearly sank it and a “We know better than you” European mentality that really did sink it. Now Rampart Casino, it’s slated for a big makeover to the tune of $75 million. Alas, the renovation will strictly touch upon the hotel components of the resort, leaving the casino to its own devices … Nebraska was late to the casino game but it’s more than making up for lost time: Ho-Chunk Inc. is planning to invest $50 million in a South Sioux City racino. Work begins this spring on what will be “a modest casino by most standards.” But from little acorns, big oaks grow.