Congress Battles Yet Again:1

We have been following the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement act and its newly added regulations, as it turns out there may not be as much hope as we thought for the incoming Congress to overturn the last minute online casino regulations that the Bush Administration is putting into place. The media has been harshly criticizing the Bush administration for its “midnight rulings” in the UIGEA and putting the burden on the financial institutions of the United States to deny any illegal internet gambling activity during this time of economic woes. The Birmingham News reported recently that there has been a ‘line drawn’ when it comes to overturning any of the regulations that have recently been enacted.

One Alabama Representative, Spencer Bachus, has been against the online casino industry for a long time and he says that the new Congress will not overturn the new policies in 2009. It is arguable that the so called ‘midnight rulings’ are almost as controversial in the media as the Act itself. The regulations were attached to a must-pass security bill and were passed during a late night Congress session. In fact, most politicians who voted for the security bill had no idea that the regulations against online casinos and internet gambling were even there. This places a burden on the US financial institutions in a time when their time needs to be spent trying to fix the economy.

Online casinos are illegal in the United States, but there seems to be several exceptions to the internet gambling rules. For example, it is perfectly legal to purchase lottery tickets online. It is also legal to bet on horse races and fantasy sports drafts, yet it is illegal to play slots at an online casino. Some would argue that Americans have a right to choose what they spend their extra income on. Who is the government to tell its people what they can and can not spend their money on? Is this not a democracy?