In the meantime, the casino is operating out of a temporary building, a long stretch of trailers with about 1,000 gaming machines, according to the tribe. The vision for Two Kings Casino is for a large, modern casino and resort on the site just off Interstate 85, less than 40 minutes from Uptown Charlotte. The effort required congressional action and faced several legal challenges before getting the green light from the Trump administration in 2020.

The Catawba have been working for decades to get permission to open a tribal casino, first in South Carolina and then turning their attention to North Carolina. Haley also served as ambassador to the United Nations under Donald Trump.

Nikki Haley, the Wall Street Journal reported this week. The people benefiting include the brother of South Carolina Congressman James Clyburn and the husband of former South Carolina Gov. Construction on a new casino outside Charlotte could be delayed as federal investigators look into who is benefiting from the Catawba Two Kings Casino.