Featured

Barney Frank to Save Online Poker in the US?

US Representative Barney Frank is set to introduce a bill on Thursday in an attempt to roll back much of the effects of the unlawful internet Gambling Enforcement Ace (UIGEA) that was passed last October.

While any legislation to repeal or reform the act faces an obvious uphill battle (once in place, it’s much harder to rally support from elected officials to ostensibly support degenerate activities such as playing poker by repealing or reforming existing legislation that prohibits it), US poker players will take any glimmer of hope they can get these days.

Some poker enthusiasts looking to roll back the UIGEA believe that Frank’s approach (introducing a new, broader act that tackles the broader issue of the right of American citizens to gamble online) is slightly off-target, choosing instead to support the approach of the Poker Player’s Alliance (PPA), which has been lobbying for a carve-out for poker in the existing UIGEA legislation. While the PPA faces the same uphill climb, the theory behind their approach is that it’s much easier (and rocks many fewer boats) to get an exemption for poker and leave the UIGEA largely intact, as opposed to introducing entirely new bills to repeal or reform the UIGEA.