Florida Senator and potential 2016 Presidential candidate Marco Rubio has been making headlines over the last week due to comments in connection to RAWA and online poker.
According to a report in the Las Vegas Review Journal the RAWA co-sponsor may be absolute in his position regarding iGaming.
The report claims that Rubio might be open to allowing online poker to become regulated but still ban all other forms of online gambling.
Rubio Could Support Online Poker Carveout
The biggest piece of information released in a recent article interviewing Rubio was that he may support a carveout for online poker.
According to Rubio, "On the issue of Internet poker, the only difference between the poker games and the others is that it involves an element of skill associated with and compared with just a slot machine online."
"So that's the one area that distinguishes it a little bit."
The Restoration of America's Wire Act (RAWA) would ban all forms of online gambling in the United States, including online poker.
It would also reverse the legal status of online poker in Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey and make the activity illegal.
An online poker carveout would allow states to legalize online poker but all other forms of iGaming would remain illegal.
This would cripple the regulated market in New Jersey. The state presently pulls in a bit less than $2 million from online poker as opposed to $8 to $10 million monthly from table games.
No Carveouts On Horizon According to LV Sands VP
While Rubio may support an online poker carveout, he appears to be in the minority.
According to Las Vegas Sands VP of Government Relations Andy Abbout, "There is no carve-out from the bill's sponsors."
"There may be some varying opinions from the co-sponsors, but there really isn't any push for it."
Knowing that the primary sponsors do not support a carveout for online poker, one has to wonder whether Rubio's comments were made just to appease potential iPoker supporters or to deflect heat regarding RAWA.
Support for RAWA has been waning in recent months, leading to rumors of an alternative proposal that would put a two-year ban on online gambling expansion in the United States.
Dubbed "RAWA-Lite", the bill would ban iGaming expansion while a study is conducted at the congressional level At present, RAWA-Lite remains merely a rumor with some believing that there's little chance it will actually become a bill.