Senator Graham is again pushing ahead with plans to tackle online gambling in the United States. Steadily, he carries on.
Senator Lindsey Graham is one of the most notorious figures in the midst of the iGaming industry. A high-ranking official, the 63-year-old has been the bulwark of all opposition directed at the industry since he stepped into office in 2003. Come January, Mr. Graham will serve on the Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman, an empowering body which can help him with the fight against the iGaming industry in the United States and target online poker.
At a time when the industry is looking to expand, Mr. Graham’s disgruntled demeanor is most certainly unwanted. Mr. Graham’s actions targeting the online gambling industry have long been chalked up to his association with Sheldon Adelson, a billionaire casino mogul and a friend to current U.S. President Donald Trump.
Mr. Adelson is said not to embrace the changes that online casinos want to bring around, finding it easier to campaign against them. And while Mr. Graham is not Jonathan Kyl, the man who came up with the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 (UIGEA) and killed the online poker industry, Mr. Graham seems resolved to continue and ramp up the rhetoric against online casinos.
He has made several public appearances, including at an AG session where he said that the Wire Act had been compromised by the Obama administration and he would personally seek to amend it.
WATCH: @LindseyGrahamSC tells AG Sessions in Senate Approps Cmte hearing that “Senator Feinstein and I are very worried that this bizarre interpretation of the Wire Act by the Obama administration is going to lead to holy hell ungoverned spaces when it comes to internet gambling” pic.twitter.com/I1DqOLSRbv
— Coalition To Stop Internet Gambling (@StopNetGambling) May 8, 2018
Mr. Graham’s fights against the online industry have not always been successful in his attempts to hamstring the burgeoning online poker, lottery and casino industries. For instance, the states of New York and Illinois decided to challenge the interpretation of the Wire Act, originally introduced in 1961, in a bid to ensure that online poker and associated activities can carry on uninterrupted.
In 2011, the Department of Justice examined the Wire Act and the online gaming industry, concluding that the legislation only applied to sports betting. Mr. Graham is particularly sly. He doesn’t try to champion his ideas openly, but uses a number of devices, such as including the legislation in obligatory bills, to see if he can get his way.
However, his efforts have been curbed so far. And yet, Mr. Graham’s commitment to stop online gambling strikes as bizarre. By his own admittance, he has never sent an e-mail. That was back in 2015. And yet, he continues to argue against the spreading of online technologies.
Presently, Mr. Graham intends to seek a way to reverse the 2011 DoJ’s decision whereby only sports betting fall in the scope of the Wire Act. If the decision is reversed, then Mr. Graham could create a legal limbo, which will strip states from the powers to be responsible for the legalization of online poker and lotteries, with the activities already vastly popular in several states across the country. Places such as Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey have vibrant industries that generate billions worth of yearly revenue.
However, the man who has never sent an e-mail is intent on delivering justice. Regardless of his affiliation with Mr. Adelson who continues to oppose the digitalization of the sector.
