When Gov. Rick Scott says Florida "is open for business," does he mean casinos? The gaming industry is taking that proposition bet.

Several Las Vegas casino companies are said to be angling to build destination resorts in the Sunshine State. And they have a politically connected player doing the spade work in South Florida.

Al Cardenas, a Miami lobbyist for Wynn casinos and a former state Republican Party chairman, was recently quoted as saying, "The concept is not just to create a source of revenue for the state that could equal or surpass the lottery. More important is the billions that would be invested in our state and the creation of tens of thousands of permanent, high-paying jobs."

Whether gaming would provide a financial windfall is a matter of debate. Casino moguls point to Las Vegas, which has swelled from a dusty desert outpost to a metropolitan market of more than 2 million people.

Critics cite Atlantic City, where full-scale gaming has done little or nothing to bolster New Jersey's fiscal or social standing. Crime remains endemic in the city, and casino revenues have not trickled down from its gambling spas.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott has played both sides of the casino question. He quickly backed away from a St. Petersburg Times report that he was "considering" resort-style gaming.

But Scott's opening was followed up this week by Senate President Mike Haridopolos, who opined that there was a "50-50 chance" that enabling legislation could pass this session.

State Sen. Paula Dockery, R-Lakeland, says she is surprised by the casino push.

"I'm not sure why we're discussing it. After all the work by [Rep.] Bill Galvano and [Sen.] Dennis Jones, I thought we were done," Dockery told Sunshine State News.

Galvano and Jones helped shepherd through then-Gov. Charlie Crist's Seminole compact last session, enabling the tribe to offer Las Vegas-style gaming and loosening rules regulating card rooms at race tracks and jai alai frontons.

TRIGGERING AN ECONOMIC BOOM, OR CANNIBALIZING BUSINESS?

The velocity and persistency of the latest casino conversation suggests that there is more behind-the-scenes action.

Lawmakers appear open to discussion as they search for ways to plug a $3 billion-plus budget gap. Some, arguing that there's no such thing as being a little pregnant, figure the Seminole pact opened the door for more gambling ventures.

Gary Bitner, a spokesman for the Seminoles, said the tribe had no comment.

But Haridopolos told radio station WFLA that he's open to the idea of expanding gaming. “We’re a big-time gambling state and we need to figure out in general how we’re going to maximize revenue because people are going to gamble," the Merritt Island Republican said.

Tea party groups, which helped elect Republican supermajorities in both houses last fall, tend to be agnostic about gaming. Steering clear of moral issues, the movement focuses on fiscal concerns. The prospect of new jobs is appealing.

On the other hand, social conservatives adamantly oppose the expansion of gambling.

John Stemberger, who heads the Florida Family Policy Council, calls the casino talk "very shortsighted."

"It does not look at the long-term, secondary impacts on society, including depression and divorce," the Orlando attorney says.

Opposition to casinos is more than a moral concern. Studies weighing the cost-benefit of gambling contend that, in the long run, casinos actually sap economic vitality of communities while contributing to pathologies ranging from alcoholism to crime to higher bankruptcy rates. Las Vegas and Atlantic City are cited as prime examples.