Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has been pushing for the licensing to build three casinos in the state but now has stated he wants to make Internet gambling illegal for the state’s citizens. A part of the Governor’s bill for the state casinos is that any resident who makes a bet online would receive up to two years in prison and $25,000 in fines.
Representative Barney Frank who is trying to pass his IGREA bill has publicly criticized the Governor. “Why is gambling in a casino OK and gambling on the Internet is not?” Frank said. “He’s making a big mistake. He’s giving opponents an argument against him.”
The director of the Center for Gaming Research at the University of Nevada has suggested that he knows what could be the reason for the provision in Patrick’s bill. David Schwartz said that he could be trying to gain more money from the casinos by shutting down competition which would be online betting. “If you were cynical about it, you’d think that they’re trying to set up a monopoly for the casinos,” Schwartz said.
Patrick’s people have not given an answer or reason why the Governor is for the casinos but opposed to online gambling. He has also not commented on Mr. Frank’s statements. The Governor’s proposal has been introduced but has yet to have a hearing. It will be scheduled sometime next year. The expected revenue for the licensing fees would be in the $200 to $300 million range for each casino. According to Patrick’s bill any method of online wagering such as telephone and internet.
The Poker Players Alliance have been for Patrick’s bill but will oppose it due to the online gambling stipulations. They do not understand why he wants to eliminate online gambling like so many others. “It makes absolutely no sense to me,” said Randy Castonguay, director of the Massachusetts chapter of the Poker Players Alliance. “It’s actually kind of laughable if you think about it.”
If the bill is passed it will join other states that have passed an online gambling ban. In my own personal opinion this bill makes no sense to me other than the fact that the Governor wants to monopolize the state with the new casinos blocking out all other sources of betting.
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He better have a good reason regarding the bill since it’s pretty obvious that his decisions are affected by things that are not related to his work.