Scott deal a dud?; Storm on Capitol Hill

Slim and none appear to be Florida Gov. Rick Scott‘s choices for a special session next month to ratify a casino compact with the Seminole Tribe. Legislators who note that the current compact doesn’t sunset until next year wonder what’s the rush. Others fear that Scott has given away the store — an impression not helped by the deep secrecy in which negotiations have been cloaked. State Democrats, kept in the dark, wonder why they should do anything to help the GOP governor. And private-sector casino interests don’t see any goodies forthcoming for them. Sheldon Adelson has turned off the Scott cash spigot, as has Donald Trump. Solons fear that South Florida megaresorts are off the table, as it parimutuel expansion. They also fret that not only will the Seminoles keep blackjack, their game repertory will expand to include craps and roulette. (Of course, if destination casinos were legalized with those games, the Seminoles would have to be given them, too.) What looked like bold initiative has turned into an embarrassing gubernatorial face-plant.

Speaking of Adelson, 10 conservative groups opened a verbal can of whup-ass on his attempt to get Internet gambling outlawed. In an open letter to four congressional chairmen and ranking members, they ripped Adelson’s minions on Capitol Hill but good. In addition to familiar arguments about the preferability of legal, regulated Internet gambling to its black-market alternative, they leaned heavily on the 10th Amendment to the Bill of Rights. That’s the one that reserves for the states any rights not specifically enumerated or banned in the Constitution. States that legalize medical marijuana, for instance, do so under the umbrella of the 10th Amendment.

“H.R. 4301 also creates carve-outs that exempt certain special interests from the federal government’s reach,” read the letter, in part. “This amounts to the federal government picking winners and losers–choosing select industries or private-sector businesses to succeed at the expense of others, which is at odds with free-market competition.”

Michelle Minton followed up with a fairly thorough demolition of the efforts by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT). She cites analysis of H.R. 4301 that notes its several rewrites of the Federal Wire Act, concluding that it’s an attempt to codify a superseded interpretation of the law. Most of Adelson’s congressional champions are also advocates of the ‘federalism’ movement, which puts them at odds with themselves where the Wire Act is concerned. “Will Chaffetz attempt to impose Utah‘s alcohol regulations on the rest of the country,” Minton asks, adding, “What about other forms of Internet commerce?

“When websites are regulated by American authorities, they have an incentive to obey our laws and offer remedy when consumers are victimized or they risk losing their license and access to our customers. It’s the unregulated sites that have nothing to lose.”

I’d call that a persuasive argument.

Bonus Quote of the Day: “We do not believe Virginia will have gaming, probably in my lifetime, and I want to live a long time.” — MGM Resorts International CEO James Murren, during today’s quarterly conference call.