Barney Frank To Unveil Pro-Poker Legislation Today
Reuters, Bloomberg and The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) have all announced that Barney Frank will unveil his much anticipated pro-online poker legislation today in a bid to over-turn the UIGEA.
The UIGEA currently makes it illegal for financial institutions to handle money transactions between US citizens and online gambling sites.
The new bill being proposed by Barney Franks will try to reverse this act and so open the online gaming world, or to put it in his words,
“enable Americans to bet online and put an end to an inappropriate interference with their personal freedom.”
Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank has long been apposed to the UIGEA, stating that it is an invasion of personal freedom, often speaking vehemently in its defence.
“Why the hell is it any of my business if somebody wants to gamble on the Internet? It’s an invasion of personal freedom. My main motivation is to take the government out of private lives.”
The introduction of the legislation is the first step, to be passed in the House of Congress however, it will need backing. He already has support in the poker world from the likes of Harrah’s, the PPA and Youbet.com but the real difference will be congress support from the congressmen and women of America. To gather this support the bill needs the help of poker players.
“The best thing for the poker community to do now is to rally behind Congressman Frank and his bill,” said John Pappas, the executive director of the PPA. “You need to make sure you tell your congressman or congresswoman how important this bill is to you.”
Although personal freedom in the land of the free should be enough, the biggest over-riding factor that could sway the outcome of the bill will be the generation of money. How much could America actually raise if it legalised the transactions of payments and opened up the online poker world to the American market?
Republicans controlled the White House and Congress when the law was approved, mow, Democrats are in control in both branches of the government. Obama and his love of poker are well documented but the bill will need widespread support when it reaches the house floor in September. Today is the first step.
Related news:
