An anti-online gambling lobbying group backed by casino mogul Sheldon Adelson may have lost an important ally in the US Department of Justice, after Attorney General Jeff Sessions recused himself from the issue.
During his confirmation hearing back in January 2017, the DOJ head said that he was “shocked” by a 2011 decision that allowed individual states to determine whether they wanted a legalized and regulated online gambling market or not. AG Sessions further noted that he would revisit the ruling and that he would make a decision based on a careful study into the matter.
Although he did not state explicitly that he would ban online gaming at the federal level back then, he signaled that he was not pleasantly disposed towards this type of gambling service.
Bloomberg reported on Friday that AG Sessions has recused himself from a future ruling on online gambling. An Adelson-backed lobbying group – the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling – had hired Charles Cooper to lobby against online gambling in the DOJ. However, it became known in early June that Mr. Cooper had been hired by AG Sessions himself as a personal lawyer amid an ongoing probe into potential Russian interference in the 2016 Presidential Election.
To prevent any conflict of interest, AG Sessions has decided to refrain from a decision in relation to the 2011 ruling that paved the way for the creation of Nevada, Delaware, and New Jersey’s iGaming markets.
The Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling was created in 2013 and has been staunchly backed by Mr. Adelson ever since. The group has tried to bring up for discussion its Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA), which calls for a federal online gambling ban, on several occasions. Yet, the Congress has so far shown little interest in the effort.
However, many believe that RAWA may eventually succeed during Mr. Trump’s presidency. As mentioned above, the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling has Mr. Adelson as its main supporter. The casino tycoon, who owns properties in Las Vegas, Pennsylvania, Macau, and Singapore, was also among the biggest GOP financial backers during President Trump’s presidential campaign.
On the other hand, the current US President was once a casino owner himself. And according to 2011 Securities and Exchange Commission filings, he may have been interested in entering the online gambling industry. In other words, he may eventually adopt a softer stance towards this type of offering, despite the aggressive lobbyism of his former colleague, Mr. Adelson.
The Las Vegas casino billionaire has explained his heavy distaste for iGaming with the fact it provides children and other vulnerable people with too easy access to gambling. However, it is more realistic to believe that the businessman fears that the exponential growth online gambling has seen in Europe in recent years would multiply in the US and this would have a disastrous effect on the land-based casino industry.
