Since Republican Congressman Jason Chaffetz re-introduced a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives to enact a ban on online gambling, many groups you’d expect to oppose the move have come out against it.
But perhaps in a sign of how divisive the issue is, several conservative groups—worried that the bill infringes on state’s rights—have also come out against the bill.
The American Conservative Union is one such group.
“Jason Chaffetz is a good conservative with an American Conservative Union lifetime rating of 94 percent. However, we are disappointed that on this issue he is taking the side of big government,” said ACU head Dan Schneider in a press release. “Conservatives don’t have to agree on the value of gambling, but we should agree that it is unwise to use the brute force of the federal government to try to stop states from making their own decisions on this activity, especially if the reason for this action is to support gambling entrepreneurs in Las Vegas. Unfortunately for them, what happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas; it should be up to the states to determine if they want to reject or accept Vegas.”
The union echoed concerns first raised by former congressman Ron Paul that the bill—titled the Restoration of America’s Wire Act—represents political cronyism for Adelson, who is a major contributor to Republican political candidates.
“The ACU trusts governors, including the 31 Republicans, to set the gambling regulations in each state; whether that is prohibition or regulation,” the statement continued. “The federal government does have a role in legitimate law enforcement matters, but it should not take on the added responsibility of overriding a state’s inherent police powers. Indeed, Congress already has expressly supported the rights of each state with this activity in the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 where the fundamental principle of states’ rights was preserved.”
The Campaign for Liberty, founded by Paul, also opposes the bill.
“Some in the GOP must think the American people are stupid. After successfully selling the American people on taking the United States in a new direction, members of the GOP think one of its first legislative priorities should be to limit economic freedom, impose top-down federal regulations, and expand the surveillance state,” said C4L President John Tate in a press release . “This is not just an issue that should concern those who like to gamble, but all Americans who value state sovereignty, free markets, and a free and open Internet.
“I urge Campaign for Liberty members and all Americans who value Internet freedom and free markets, even if they don’t gamble, to contact their legislators and tell them to oppose the ‘Restoration of America’s Wire Act,” he said.
A number of other pro-online-gambling groups have also come out against the bill.
The Coalition for Consumer and Online Protection, an advocacy group backed by Caesars and MGM Resorts, called the potential ban bad policy that would only lead to more illegal online gambling at various offshore sites.
The ban also brought out comments from Jim Ryan, CEO of Pala Interactive which has just gone live with an online gambling site in New Jersey.
Ryan said there’s a good chance the bill could pass in a Republican-controlled Congress, saying it was the biggest threat to the industry since “Black Friday,” when the Department of Justice shut down overseas online poker sites in 2011.
“They’re worried about underage gambling and terrorism,” Ryan told PocketFives. “Why push it into the black market as opposed to regulating it? I would love to get involved in the debate when that point is discussed. We know who’s funding every account and where the money is going to and coming from.”
Ryan pointed out that New Jersey has not seen one case of underage gambling in more than a year of offering online casino sites.
