August 30th, 2008
excerpt:
Aug. 30 (Bloomberg) — U.S. poker players have anted up for another high-stakes game — lobbying.
Trying to overturn a 2006 U.S. ban on online poker, gamblers have started a lobbying group, established a political action committee, and promoted their effort to politicians by holding poker tournaments at the Republican and Democratic nominating conventions.
“Up until this point, the minority of the public that is anti-gambling has yelled louder,” professional poker player Andy Bloch said. “We’re trying to change that.”
The Poker Players Alliance, which claims 1 million members, has invited lawmakers and celebrities to a charity tournament Sept. 3 in Minneapolis, across the Mississippi River from St. Paul, where Republicans are meeting to formally nominate John McCain for president.
Before President George W. Bush signed the Republican- backed gambling ban in October 2006, the U.S. accounted for about half the market on Internet gambling sites operated from countries where betting is legal. Inserted into unrelated port- security legislation by then-Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican, the law forbids credit-card companies to process online-wagering transactions.
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Bloomberg.com: Politics
Author Contact Info: Jonathan D. Salant, Bloomberg
