Does The Election Of Donald Trump Scupper US Online Betting?

Posted: December 9, 2016

Updated: October 6, 2017

No one expected the election of Donald Trump but now he’s all but in residence at the White House will we see a development or regression in the gaming industry with which he has been so long connected? Will he open up the industry to big internet names like Bet365 or are we more likely to see a charge back to the dark days of the 1950s?

There will be fans of The Rocky Horror Picture Show that will recall the Timewarp begins with “just a jump to the left, and then a step to the ri i i i i ight” which is almost precisely the opposite of US political progress that, after slow steps towards the left and liberalism over the last half century or so, has taken a massive leap to the right in the election of Donald Trump leaving everyone in the US gambling laws that have given them such enviable freedoms aren’t repealed.

Net Betting Battle Begins

  • 10 Attorneys general: against
  • Nevada Rep. Dina Titus: for
  • RAWA may make a return

Whilst for various ethnic groups, minority religions and anyone with a sexual orientation any flavor but vanilla this could be a troubling time, however you would think that if there were a group of people (beyond redneck yahoos that love to hate on anyone different) that would stand to benefit from the election of Donald Trump it would be gamblers, given his long well known connection to the casino industry, however it may not all be plain sailing under the presidency of Donald Trump.

Will Bet365 Get A US Opportunity Under Trump?

This is especially true for those of us that enjoy putting a bet on sports in the US at Bet365 or similar online gambling sites, because whilst many of us had looked forward to a liberalization of the ban on this cornerstone of modern living it would now appear unlikely that will continue under the stewardship of someone who not only owns bits of physical casinos (the internet’s anachronistic competition) but was also sponsored by internet gambling’s greatest enemy. Sheldon Adelson.

Sheldon Adelson football betting

Sheldon Adelson has been one of the biggest detractors of online gambling in the past (photo: politico.com)

Sheldon Adelson’s hatred of internet gambling is well known, and his propelling of the Restoration of America’s Wire Act, a law written by his lawyers to prevent anyone like Bet365 competing with his casinos, may well return following the election of Donald Trump who has already thrown Chris Christie, Governor of New Jersey and advocate of regulated online gambling in the US, under the bus, and even before being sworn in faces pressure to make a decision on the future of internet betting.

Future Of Internet Gaming Threatened By Election Of Donald Trump

Naturally the pressure comes from both directions, and whilst 10 attorneys generals have written a letter to the President-Elect demanding he oppose online gambling, Nevada Representative Dina Titus has called on him to reject the petition, that was signed by Nevada’s own Attorney General Adam Laxalt, saying it “contains several inaccuracies and unfair allegations” and that a ban on Bet365 and it’s ilk would negatively affect employment growth in the gaming industry in Nevada and elsewhere.

Restore America’s Wire Act

  • Sheldon Adelson’s love child law
  • bans any state from legalization
  • likely to be revived by Trump

Anyone in the US gambling news of the election of Donald Trump would signal a new dawn for the gaming industry, therefore, is likely to be disappointed as his own business interests, and those of his campaign contributors like Adelson may well drive the new President to ignore the forces of progress and attempt to return the US to the 1950s when Vegas casinos were king and there wasn’t an internet at all. Come January 20th online gaming in China could be easier than it ever will be in the US of A and in China they jail you for it.

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