Bills filed in the state legislature that would have legalized gambling failed to make it out of committee, despite a push from one of the largest casinos in the world. Rice University Political Analyst Mark Jones says the pro-gaming forces blew it. Casino companies have yet to come up with a reason for the state’s Republican leaders to change their minds and accept gambling. The Las Vegas Sands spent millions of dollars to hire dozens of lobbyists and run advertising on TV and radio that, in the end, was all for not.