O'Malley stresses need for slots

Gov. Martin O'Malley said yesterday that if a referendum on slot machine gambling fails in November, "it'll be back to the drawing board with a lot of unpopular choices, and I don't think any of us wants to go there."

Mr. O'Malley said during an interview on WCBC-AM in Cumberland that the money Maryland would eventually get from slot machines would make up about 25 percent of what's needed to balance the state's budget in coming years.

The rest of the money to handle Maryland's projected deficit comes from about $1.4 billion in tax increases approved last November during a special session and more than $1 billion in budget...