Online Poker: Alfonse D’Amato a Powerful Ally in Washington
A New York Times report discusses how poker fan and former Republican Senator from New York has signed on to lobby for the Poker Players Alliance, a grass root organization whose main goal is to legalize online poker in the US.
From the New York Times:
"Once New Yorkers collectively informed Mr. D’Amato that it was time to find a new line of work, he graduated to a higher-stakes game, playing with Howard Stern, among others. He is now a stalwart of a weekly game on Long Island where a bad night might mean that a player drops $5,000 or more.
"As Mr. D’Amato tells it, and as his card-playing cronies confirm, he rarely leaves a game a loser. Yet it is a safe bet that his love of poker never proved so lucrative as it did last week, when he signed a lobbying deal with the Poker Players Alliance, a nascent group that hopes that Mr. D’Amato will help them become players in Washington politics, too.
"Most immediately, the group is hoping that Mr. D’Amato, long known for his connections to Washington insiders and his ability to deliver perks to his constituents and interest groups, can help them overturn a new federal ban on Internet gambling — or at least exempt poker from its provisions."
D'Amato's name first surfaced in association with the PPA two weeks ago.
The Times article cautions, however, that even though Mr. D’Amato’s involvement in the lobbying effort is bound to generate plenty of talk, it is not expected to lead to overturning the new law anytime soon.
"Moreover, Mr. D’Amato, for all his ability to attract attention and parlay his reputation into big money, may not have much sway in a Democratic-controlled Congress preoccupied with war, budget deficits and presidential politics. There is little interest there at the moment in turning back to a subject decided a year ago, when Republicans ruled."
But what we get from the former Senator is an aggressive style that is bound to draw attention.
The money being spent to outlaw poker and enforce the ban, Mr. D’Amato said, could be better spent “in the battle against money laundering, trafficking in drugs, or trafficking in terrorism.”
He takes issue with Congress’s decision to lump in poker, a game of skill as well as luck, with games of pure chance like roulette and craps. “It’s really a great sport,” Mr. D’Amato said, perhaps the country’s favorite sport. “You don’t have 70 million people participating in baseball.”
D'Amato is one of a handful of politicians who would like to see the law regarding online poker overturned (we should emphasize that the law in question holds banking institutions responsible, not actual players).
Chris Strow, the Republican Representative from Washington State, told our Kira Wissman last week that he is looking to have what many deem to be a ludicrous and self-serving law overturned in his own state.
Last summer, Washington State made placing an online bet a Class C felony.
Representative Strow and a few other representatives felt that this type of legislation was a breach of their citizens’ privacy for numerous reasons and sought to remedy the mistake through a piece of legislation in January, 2007. This House Bill (HB) #1243 was introduced on January 15, 2007 and referred to the Committee on Commerce and Labor. It was then shot down.
A revised bill was submitted to the House on February 9, 2007. It has since been referred to the Committee on Commerce and Labor and is still awaiting a final decision at this date.
When asked about his views on online gambling, he was hesitant to openly admit his support for legalizing and regulating the industry. He would like to see more studies done on the effects of local economies, etc.; however, he steadfastly believes that every U.S. citizen has the right to govern their own private lives. He compared the crackdown on online gambling to prohibition and truly believes that there is no way to eliminate the activity.
Rep. Strow had some interesting thoughts on why more has not been done to gather public support against the recent federal legislation. He said that he has had numerous colleagues and lobbyists approach him to commend him for his efforts, saying they wished they also had the guts to stand up and speak out. According to Rep. Strow, several lobbyists have asserted that due to the sensitive nature of the subject, they risked losing funding for some of the programs they support of the lobbied in favor of online gambling. Indian casino interests were mentioned specifically.
Over the next couple of years, Rep. Strow hopes to introduce legislation to legalize online poker rooms in his state. He realizes he faces a large uphill battle, much like Rep. Jim Kasper in North Dakota does.
Then there is Barney Frank, Chairman of the Financial Services Committee in Congress, who made headlines two weeks ago following reports that he was looking to have a "two year amnesty in regard to Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act."
Though Frank's spokesperson denied such an "amnesty" appeared on any upcoming agendas, he stopped short of saying Frank would not pursue this in the near future.
Frank is quoted as saying: "Adults are entitled to do with their money what they want to do."
He is very much against the UIGEA.
And with D'Amato taking such a strong chance, the online poker industry can only hope that other politicians follow in his footsteps. D'Amato is not standing alone as it is now.
Plenty of Americans are still playing poker online, though not with the publicly traded companies like PartyPoker and Paradise, which fear reprisals from Washington despite being based overseas, the New York Times report points out.
Instead, online players have shifted to smaller, privately owned sites. They are forced to find other means for transferring money in and out of their accounts, given that the new law more closely monitors financial institutions processing wagers.
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Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com
Originally published March 4, 2007 8:25 pm ET
