The short answer to this question is, NO!
The problem I have with leaving it at a simple “no” is the short answer doesn’t make for much of an article, so if you want to know why the answer is no just keep reading.
Where are the Republicans on this issue?
Congress is simply too dysfunctional at present to even consider tackling such an issue, and the current divide republican politics makes this a very hot-button issue among a small subset of voters–not that democrats are lining up to legalize online poker, it’s just not as divisive a vote for democrats and their base.
Online gaming is what I call a 20% issue for republicans.
A 20% issue basically means that 10% of people are vehemently on one side and 10% on the other, with the remaining 80% not caring either way. So, what you end up with is a very loud debate that only impacts a specific constituency. For a republican lawmaker that means libertarians on one side and social conservatives on the other –this happens to be two constituencies that are highly involved in the voting process and generally kowtowed to.
Social conservatives HATE the idea of online gambling, and any Republican who voted for an online gambling would almost certainly face a far right primary with loads of money being poured in by groups like Focus on the Family.
Whether they agree with legalizing online poker or not, these lawmakers simply can’t take the vote.
Because of this, in the current climate where members of congress have to begin their reelection campaigns the moment they are elected, it might be too much for us to even ask them to choose a side in what would be a contentious vote that appeals mainly to the party’s base voters –and I simply can’t imagine a republican legislator risking a tough primary over an online gambling vote –So if you are a republican lawmaker, why wake the beast when you can just ignore it?
What about the Democrats?
As I said, democrats won’t face the political backlash of a primary simply because they voted in favor of legalizing online poker, but there is still a political price to pay, and any democrat in a purple district probably wants nothing to do with a vote on online gambling, as the political ad basically writes itself.
Furthermore, the vast majority of democrat voters are more concerned about other issues at the moment. If the country was running fairly smoothly, this might be an issue a gaggle of congressmen and congresswomen could get behind, but right now it’s like asking someone to switch office supply companies to save $5 a month when the company is hemorrhaging money and heading towards bankruptcy.
Three more reasons a federal online poker bill is DOA
“It’s the economy STUPID!”
Another roadblock preventing federal online gambling legislation is the tried and true Washington DC deflection tactic of, “we have bigger fish to fry right now and can’t be spending time on something like that.”
So, at every mention of online poker any legislator who doesn’t want to touch the issue can simply say, “My #1 priority right now is getting the American people back to work.” And that’s the end of that discussion.
Even with a handful of members championing online poker, they can be brushed aside all too easily, because 90% of the American public could care less if online poker is legal or illegal, and I’d wager that a healthy percentage of the population is completely unaware you can play poker for money online.
*Not so sick brag: This is the second time in just a couple weeks I’ve used James Carville famous quote in an article.*
Um, #hold’em ?
As we learned from Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) most members of Congress don’t have the foggiest idea of what online poker is, or how the industry works. Senator McCaskill tweeted out the following after a PPA Twitter-bombing of her account:
My twitter account has been hijacked by online poker fans. Um, #hold’em ?
Yup, we are poker fans. Not poker players. Not poker advocates. Just poker fans. And then we got a pointless hearing where senators asked some of the most asinine questions and demonstrated their lack of knowledge about the issue.
Someone else will clean this up
Like the lazy coworker we have all dealt with at some point in our lives –you know, the person who forgets to file their paperwork and just leaves on top of the cabinet, or knocks over the wastebasket and just keeps on walking— Congress’ current attitudes towards online poker seems to be, “ahh, someone else will take care of this.” And that someone else is apparently the states.
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