THE BOOKIE OF VIRTUE

William J. Bennett Has Made Millions Lecturing People on Morality--and
Blown It on Gambling.

"We should know that too much of anything, even a good thing, may prove to
be our undoing...[We] need ... to set definite boundaries on our appetites."

- --The Book of Virtues, by William J. Bennett

No person can be more rightly credited with making morality and personal
responsibility an integral part of the political debate than William J.
Bennett. For more than 20 years, as a writer, speaker, government official,
and political operative, Bennett has been a commanding general in the
culture wars. As Ronald Reagan's chairman of the National Endowment for the
Humanities, he was the scourge of academic permissiveness. Later, as
Reagan's secretary of education, he excoriated schools and students for
failing to set and meet high standards. As drug czar under George H.W.
Bush, he applied a get-tough approach to drug use, arguing that individuals
have a moral responsibility to own up to their addiction. Upon leaving
public office, Bennett wrote The Book of Virtues, a compendium of parables
snatched up by millions of parents and teachers across the political
spectrum. Bennett's crusading ideals have been adopted by politicians of
both parties, and implemented in such programs as character education
classes in public schools--a testament to his impact.

But Bennett, a devout Catholic, has always been more Old Testament than
New. Even many who sympathize with his concerns find his combative style
haughty and unforgiving. Democrats in particular object to his partisan
sermonizing, which portrays liberals as inherently less moral than
conservatives, more given to excusing personal weaknesses, and unwilling to
confront the vices that destroy families. During the impeachment of Bill
Clinton, Bennett was among the president's most unrelenting detractors. His
book, The Death of Outrage, decried, among other things, the public's
failure to take Clinton's sins more seriously.

His relentless effort to push Americans to do good has enabled Bennett to
do extremely well. His best-selling The Book of Virtues spawned an entire
cottage industry, from children's books to merchandizing tie-ins to a PBS
cartoon series. Bennett commands $50,000 per appearance on the lecture
circuit and has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants from
such conservative benefactors as the Scaife and John M. Olin foundations.

Few vices have escaped Bennett's withering scorn. He has opined on
everything from drinking to "homosexual unions" to "The Ricki Lake Show" to
wife-swapping. There is one, however, that has largely escaped Bennett's
wrath: gambling. This is a notable omission, since on this issue morality
and public policy are deeply intertwined. During Bennett's years as a
public figure, casinos, once restricted to Nevada and New Jersey, have
expanded to 28 states, and the number continues to grow. In Maryland, where
Bennett lives, the newly elected Republican governor Robert Ehrlich is
trying to introduce slot machines to fill revenue shortfalls. As gambling
spreads, so do its associated problems. Heavy gambling, like drug use, can
lead to divorce, domestic violence, child abuse, and bankruptcy. According
to a 1998 study commissioned by the National Gambling Impact Study
Commission, residents within 50 miles of a casino are twice as likely to be
classified as "problem" or "pathological" gamblers than those who live
further away.

If Bennett hasn't spoken out more forcefully on an issue that would seem
tailor-made for him, perhaps it's because he is himself a heavy gambler.
Indeed, in recent weeks word has circulated among Washington conservatives
that his wagering could be a real problem. They have reason for concern.
The Washington Monthly and Newsweek have learned that over the last decade
Bennett has made dozens of trips to casinos in Atlantic City and Las Vegas,
where he is a "preferred customer" at several of them, and sources and
documents provided to The Washington Monthly put his total losses at more
than $8 million.

"I Don't Play the 'Milk Money.'"

Bennett has been a high-roller since at least the early 1990s. A review of
one 18-month stretch of gambling showed him visiting casinos, often for two
or three days at a time (and enjoying a line of credit of at least $200,000
at several of them). Bennett likes to be discreet. "He'll usually call a
host and let us know when he's coming," says one source. "We can limo him
in. He prefers the high-limit room, where he's less likely to be seen and
where he can play the $500-a-pull slots. He usually plays very late at
night or early in the morning--usually between midnight and 6 a.m." The
documents show that in one two-month period, Bennett wired more than $1.4
million to cover losses. His desire for privacy is evident in his customer
profile at one casino, which lists as his residence the address for
Empower.org (the Web site of Empower America, the non-profit group Bennett
co-chairs). Typed across the form are the words: "NO CONTACT AT RES OR BIZ!!!"

Bennett's gambling has not totally escaped public notice. In 1998, The
Washington Times reported in a light-hearted front-page feature story that
he plays low-stakes poker with a group of prominent conservatives,
including Robert Bork, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, and Chief
Justice William Rehnquist. A year later, the same paper reported that
Bennett had been spotted at the new Mirage Resorts Bellagio casino in Las
Vegas, where he was reputed to have won a $200,000 jackpot. Bennett
admitted to the Times that he had visited the casino, but denied winning
$200,000. Documents show that, in fact, he won a $25,000 jackpot on that
visit--but left the casino down $625,000.

Bennett--who gambled throughout Clinton's impeachment--has continued this
pattern in subsequent years. On July 12 of last year, for instance, Bennett
lost $340,000 at Caesar's Boardwalk Regency in Atlantic City. And just
three weeks ago, on April 5 and 6, he lost more than $500,000 at the
Bellagio in Las Vegas. "There's a term in the trade for this kind of
gambler," says a casino source who has witnessed Bennett at the high-limit
slots in the wee hours. "We call them losers."

Asked by Newsweek columnist and Washington Monthly contributing editor
Jonathan Alter to comment on the reports, Bennett admitted that he gambles
but not that he has ended up behind. "I play fairly high stakes. I adhere
to the law. I don't play the 'milk money.' I don't put my family at risk,
and I don't owe anyone anything." The documents offer no reason to
contradict Bennett on these points. Bennett claims he's beaten the odds:
"Over 10 years, I'd say I've come out pretty close to even."

"You can roll up and down a lot in one day, as we have on many occasions,"
Bennett explains. "You may cycle several hundred thousand dollars in an
evening and net out only a few thousand."

"I've made a lot of money [in book sales, speaking fees and other business
ventures] and I've won a lot of money," adds Bennett. "When I win, I
usually give at least a chunk of it away [to charity]. I report everything
to the IRS."

But the documents show only a few occasions when he turns in chips worth
$30,000 or $40,000 at the end of an evening. Most of the time, he draws
down his line of credit, often substantially. A casino source, hearing of
Bennett's claim to breaking even on slots over 10 years, just laughed.

"You don't see what I walk away with," Bennett says. "They [casinos] don't
want you to see it."

Explaining his approach, Bennett says: "I've been a 'machine person' [slot
machines and video poker]. When I go to the tables, people talk--and they
want to talk about politics. I don't want that. I do this for three hours
to relax." He says he was in Las Vegas in April for dinner with the former
governor of Nevada and gambled while he was there.

Bennett says he has made no secret of his gambling. "I've gambled all my
life and it's never been a moral issue with me. I liked church bingo when I
was growing up. I've been a poker player."

But while Bennett's poker playing and occasional Vegas jaunt are known to
some Washington conservatives, his high-stakes habit comes as a surprise to
many friends. "We knew he went out there [to Las Vegas] sometimes, but at
that level? Wow!" said one longtime associate of Bennett.

Despite his personal appetites, Bennett and his organization, Empower
America, oppose the extension of casino gambling in the states. In a recent
editorial, his Empower America co-chair Jack Kemp inveighed against
lawmakers who "pollute our society with a slot machine on every corner."
The group recently published an Index of Leading Cultural Indicators, with
an introduction written by Bennett, that reports 5.5 million American
adults as "problem" or "pathological" gamblers. Bennett says he is neither
because his habit does not disrupt his family life.

When reminded of studies that link heavy gambling to divorce, bankruptcy,
domestic abuse, and other family problems he has widely decried, Bennett
compared the situation to alcohol.

"I view it as drinking," Bennett says. "If you can't handle it, don't do it."

Bennett is a wealthy man and may be able to handle losses of hundreds of
thousands of dollars per year. Of course, as the nation's leading spokesman
on virtue and personal responsibility, Bennett's gambling complicates his
public role. Moreover, it has already exacted a cost. Like him or hate him,
William Bennett is one of the few public figures with a proven ability to
influence public policy by speaking out. By furtively indulging in a costly
vice that destroys millions of lives and families across the nation,
Bennett has profoundly undermined the credibility of his word on this moral
issue.