[polldaddy poll=8428444]Online gambling supporters felt that the market was going to be shut down again with the GOP victory in the US mid-term elections, which is why we decided to ask our readers, “What will be the effect of Republicans gaining control of the house and the senate on online gambling regulation?”
37% said, “Nothing will change” while 33% believed that it will be positive and 30% voted “negative.”
With GOP in control, the new Congress could move against online gambling, passing the Republican-lawmakers-authored Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA)—a legislation that would outlaw all forms of Internet gambling and restore the original interpretation of the 1961 Wire Act, a bill that could allow the Senate to control any online activity.
Plus, the anti-web gambling proponent and billionaire Sheldon Adelson has spent heavily to make online gaming illegal —and to get Republicans elected, too.
The political allies are in position. All set… or maybe not, because even with a GOP-dominated legislature, the bill will need some Democratic votes to move through congress and not all Republicans are in favor of banning one of the most profitable markets in the world; Republicans, who aren’t under Adelson’s umbrella of cash, such as Nevada Senator Dean Heller, who will fight against an online gambling ban to protect state interests and Governor Charlie Baker, who has been fighting for online gambling as well as other civil rights like abortion and gay marriage.
Another thing is the “states’ right”, which have been an issue on the national scene from the beginning. Federal government to impose a nationwide ban on online gambling will violate the state’s rights and gambling is generally regulated at the state level, with each state determining whether individuals can gamble within its borders and whether gaming businesses can legally operate there.
At the end of the day, it’s not about what party you belong; lawmakers have to balance social conservatism, personal freedom and states’ rights issues when voting on bills like the RAWA, either that or just prefer to avoid such votes.
Next week, we ask, “Who will buy Bwin.party?” as Bwin issued a statement saying that it had “entered into preliminary discussions with a number of interested parties” who would take over the struggling company. Check back next week to see what our readers think.
