Anti-Online Gambling Bill Back In Congress For 2015

Just two months after the Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA) failed to gain ground in Congress, the anti-online gambling bill has been reintroduced to the House of Representatives by its original sponsor Jason Chaffetz (photo). If the US Congressman’s bill succeeds this time around, then the piece of legislation would see online gambling banned once more in the US, with the exceptions of horse racing, sports betting, and fantasy sports.
Furthermore, Representative Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) dispelled any hope poker players may have had that their game would be treated differently than other gambling games, when he said: “There are some people who would like to see online gaming, or a poker carve out. My message to them is you think online gaming is good, introduce a bill and pass it.”
Chaffetz’s stance is hardly surprising, though, as he is considered a close ally of casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, whose extreme views when it comes to internet gambling, and in particular poker, has been well documented over the past few years. Last year, for instance, Sheldon Adelson and his opposition group the ‘Coalition Against Internet Gambling’ took their scaremongering tactics to a whole new level when they released an anti-online gambling video warning online gambling sites could be used by criminals to fund terrorist attacks in the USA.
“While the FBI is busy defending against terrorist threats and cyber-attacks, Internet gambling will give criminals across the world a foothold in every American household, attracting criminal activity not only at home but internationally,” explained the alarmist ad.
Unlike last year, however, US Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) has yet to reintroduce RAWA to the Senate in 2015, and even if he did it’s not certain it would have any more success than in 2014. After all, while billionaire Sheldon Adelson may have plenty of sway with the Republican’s that currently holds a majority in both houses of Congress, the issue has supporters and detractors on both sides of the political divide, making such a divisive topic a political hot potato.