Lyme disease, started the California wildfires, and participated in the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand. The letter also moans about lost revenue: “Recent estimates show that the volume of illegal online gaming exceeds more than $400 billion annually, leading to more than $4 billion in lost tax revenue for state governments.” Translation: we’re not getting our cut, and that’s unacceptable. So what’s their solution? Dust off the old UIGEA playbook. They want the DOJ to “pursue injunctive relief” to block websites, cut off payment systems, and seize servers and domains. And let’s not forget the big scare tactic: “Since 2013, DOJ enforcement actions against illegal offshore gambling sites have been extremely limited,” they warn. In other words: “You’re slacking on the raids, folks. Let’s see some more fireworks.” But let’s call this what it really is: Operation Cash Grab. Billions of dollars they claim are “lost” to offshore operators, dollars they want funneled into their state coffers under the guise of protecting consumers. Meanwhile, DraftKings has clearly seen the writing on the wall. They’ve gone ahead and banned credit card deposits in the U.S., a move that screams, “We know where this is headed, and we’d like to avoid becoming the next cautionary tale.” And make no mistake, it’s only a matter of time before the rest of the U.S. market gets saddled with deposit limits, stake caps, and all the fun restrictions we’ve already watched unfold so unsuccessfully in the U.K. and Europe. So brace yourself. Because if there’s one thing American politicians love more than pretending to protect you, it’s making sure they never miss out on a slice of the pie. Welcome to the club! WALL OF SHAME National Association of US Attorneys General Back in August, with nothing pressing like crime or corruption to worry about, the U.S. Attorneys General appointed themselves The Avengers, this time sworn to protect us from the horror of internet betting. So, 50 of them got together, held hands, and sent a strongly worded letter to the Department of Justice demanding a war on offshore gambling. In this love letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Gambling Gestapo requested the DOJ block websites, seize servers, freeze bank accounts, and basically turn offshore betting into the next Prohibition, demanding action against what they call the “rampant spread of illegal offshore gaming operations.” That’s right—”rampant spread.” You’d think we were talking about a pandemic or an alien invasion, not a bunch of websites where people bet on sports. According to the AGs, these offshore companies “routinely operate without proper licensure, offer limited or non-existent consumer protections, fail to verify user age, ignore state boundaries, and evade taxation obligations.” In other words: they don’t pay into the system, which is the only sin that really matters here. They even throw in a line about how these sites “expose residents—particularly young people and vulnerable adults—to fraudulent schemes and highly addictive gambling without any oversight or accountability.” Which sounds dramatic until you remember that these same states run lotteries designed to squeeze every last dollar out of, you guessed it, young people and vulnerable adults. And of course, they dusted off the classics. Offshore gambling is apparently linked to money laundering, human trafficking, “other nefarious conduct,” and who knows — it also probably caused GPWAtimes.org 68
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