Yes. In addition, Geary saw an opportunity to cash in on (no pun intended) Michael's "magnificent endowment" to the state university. It had to help him politically that he was photographed with that check--as if to say that he had something to do with Michael's big donation.
Nevada politicians of that era knew that gangsters were behind the casino industry. They welcomed the gangsters because they were bringing money to the state--to say nothing of the contributions and bribes gangsters paid to the politicians. They had to be careful of being photographed with gangsters in public. But, Michael's donation to the university gave Geary a gold-plated opportunity to meet with Michael, safely. If a political opponent accused him of being too close to Michael, a known Mafia boss, Geary would have said, "I was there to accept a big donation to the state university, not to schmooze a gangster."