On Thursday this week, the House Committee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations is set to meet to discuss sports betting. This comes as a natural follow-up to the Supreme Court’s May decision to lift a nationwide ban on sports wagering.
The House Judiciary Committee stated on its website that the Coalition to Stop Online Gambling group, headed by virulent anti-internet-gambling tycoon, Sheldon Adelson, will be given a seat at the table during the hearing.
It is difficult to believe that Adelson’s group will have any impact when it testifies in front of federal lawmakers in Thursday’s hearing. However, it shows that, for the moment, Coalition to Stop Online Gambling, is ready to fight until its dying breath to prevent casino and poker games being offered at online gambling sites.
The 21st richest man in the world has been quoted as saying that he will “spend whatever it takes” to prevent casino games from making it into the cyber world. The founder of Las Vegas Sands Corps has spent millions, if not billions, spearheading legislation and backing lawmakers in his bid to protect his casino empire.
The Coalition to Stop Online Gambling doesn’t mince its words , nor does it stop at using scare tactics to convince Americans about its mission.
“Three states [now four with Pennsylvania] have already legalized internet gambling and many more are actively considering following suit,” reads the group’s website. “Given the potential for money laundering, terrorism financing, fraud and other criminal activity, participation by minors, exploitation of individuals with a gaming addiction, and the impact on jobs and economic activity, Congress must act now to protect American families from predatory internet gambling.”
Over the years, Sheldon Adelson has sought to bring about what he terms the restoration of the 1961 Wire Act so that individual states cannot introduce their own online gambling legislation.
With the federal overturn of the sports betting ban, it seems that Adelson’s hopes of any form of success are growing dimmer by the day. It hasn’t stopped him, however, from seeking to have his say at the latest hearing on the subject of sports betting.
Others who will testify at the Thursday hearing include Rep. Jon Bruning, who was the form Nebraska Attorney General, as well as the National Football League, the American Gaming Association, and the Nevada Gaming Control Board. The hearing will discuss the regulation of sports betting.
