If you were hiding under a rock, you missed the two-hour-long fear-mongering fest that was a House Judiciary Subcommittee’s hearing on Restoring America’s Wire Act, a bill that comes at the behest of Sheldon Adelson. It ended with a threat for a markup and among those in the room on Capitol Hill during the hearing was Poker Players AllianceExecutive Director John Pappas (pictured).



“Today’s hearing was about one thing – checking the box to advance Mr. Adelson’s bill,” said Pappas in a press release. “While the PPA has always encouraged a national discussion on the value of regulating online gambling, constructing a hearing at the behest of a political donor is an unfortunate waste of everyone’s time. This bill should die today so members of the Committee can focus on more pressing matters and not on legislation that will deny states the ability to protect its citizens.”

Adelson, who heads the Las Vegas Sands Corporation, reportedly is behind RAWA, meaning the 18th richest person on the face of the Earth according to Forbes could soon be dictating law for an entire industry.

To that end, Pappas commented, “Never in the history of US internet gaming legislation has Congress ever considered overriding states’ rights to regulate online gambling within their own borders and yet Mr. Adelson’s bill would do just that. If an unelected billionaire is granted the power to rewrite history by imposing a federal prohibition, the future is bleak for every American who values their internet freedom.”

Bleak indeed, especially with a potential markup looming.

As of Wednesday night, PocketFives and PokerNews were two of the major outlets with recaps of the hearing up and not coincidentally both had the phrase “fear-mongering” in their titles. Pappas used the term himself, saying, “It is critical that Congress distinguish the facts from the fear-mongering. For over a decade, Europe has successfully regulated online gambling and now the same can be said of Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey in the US. Only through regulation will Americans have access to advanced technologies which effectively keep minors off online gambling websites, protect problem gamblers, and prevent fraud and abuse.”

But, hey, it’s all about fear-mongering, right?

Read the recap of the Subcommittee hearing. Stay tuned to PocketFives for the latest poker legislation news.

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