New Law Cripples Internet Gambling

The major casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City and on Indian reservations did not take a position on the new law, said Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., president of the American Gaming Association. The group's reasoning: Less casino revenue comes from gambling, as entertainment, retail and other non-wagering spending now makes up 55 percent of the cash streaming into resorts such as Harrah's and Bellagio.

"The guy who comes home and goes to his den and cracks open a can of beer and bets on the Internet is not really our customer," Fahrenkopf said. "We never viewed the Internet as being competitive."

The association wants Congress to authorize an independent study of whether a legalized, nationwide, taxed and regulated online gambling system would work in the United States, as it does in Britain.

"Would we like to get into that business?" Fahrenkopf said. "Yeah, some of our guys would."

Goodlatte said he would press to update the Wire Act to conclusively extend its authority to the Internet. That part of his bill was dropped in the Senate.

"All the problems that manifest themselves with gambling, even in heavily regulated states, are even worse on the Internet," Goodlatte said yesterday. "There are family problems, bankruptcy problems, gambling addiction, gambling by minors, using gambling to launder money for criminal and terrorist organizations and organized crime. It does not help our society."

For poker advocates such as Duke, the new law is the wrong way to cure social problems.

"We've proven in history that trying to protect the minority and punish the majority never works," Duke said. "The fact is, there is a certain percentage of people who have addictive personalities [and gamble online]. Are you going to pass a law outlawing online shopping? Or day trading?"