Washington Post Handicaps Battle for Online Gambling Legalization

Dustin : February 7th, 2010

In perhaps the most comprehensive look at the push for legalization of online poker and gambling in the United States by a mainstream publication, The Washington Post published a story on the subject in its Sunday edition.

The story stops short of painting a rosy picture of the current legislation in Congress, but the writing of the story by the Post shows it is a legitimate issue in D.C.

The story comes in advance of what is likely a battle to determine the future of online poker and gambling in the United States. The rules for the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act are set to go into effect on June 1, after a six-month delay from the original date the UIGEA was supposed to take effect. At the same time, Congress will be considering legislation that legalized and regulates online poker and gambling in the U.S., which would basically make the UIGEA null and void.

In perhaps the most interesting passage of the story: “Gambling opponents say Democrats are unlikely to muster support during such a contentious year, but proponents say that changing mores and the prospect of new tax revenue give the effort a better chance than at any other time in recent memory.”

While there’s not a lot of new information in the story for anyone who has been closely following the issue, perhaps the most interesting material is the things that have not been reported on widely in the poker press. Namely, the story takes a look at the organized lobbying efforts in favor of the legislation and the money behind it:

The list of backers includes (Rep. Barney) Frank, a New England liberal who says the government should not bother gamblers, and former Republican senator Alfonse M. D’Amato (N.Y.), chairman of the Poker Players Alliance, which is leading the Capitol Hill push. With 1.2 million members, the alliance is funded largely by the Interactive Gaming Council, a Canada-based trade group for offshore gambling firms. Together, the groups have spent more than $4 million on Washington lobbying over the past year, and the alliance says its members have recently sent more than 300,000 mailings and e-mails to members of Congress.

The story also mentions that a former Democratic stalwart in Congress, Richard Gephardt, who used to be the House of Representatives’ majority leader, is a lobbyist for PokerStars.

The fact that the issue is getting real and in-depth coverage from serious news organizations is a good sign for the push for online poker’s legalization, and we’ll continue to monitor the effort as events warrant.

You can read the whole story here.