The latest on Federal online poker funds crackdown and legally questionable anti-poker court actions …

Pokerstars has confirmed with its players that indeed, some payout funds have been frozen in American banks — but they’ve credited back affected monies with a 10 percent inconvenience bonus and an invitation to try again, Gambling911 reports.

If you wish to resubmit your cashout request, you can do so from our Cashier by selecting the check option (your new check will be issued on a different account and can be deposited as normal) or wire transfer (only available for amounts greater than [$2,500]).

But while Stars’ “take care of the player first” approach may be admirable, wiring money through a new financier may just be a temporary solution to eCheck problems affecting thousands of players — a little game of financial cat and mouse (+ good-will PR) while a bigger, costlier legal battle takes shape.

Under advisement from the DOJ agent, a federal prosecutor in New York’s Southern District apparently got a magistrate to sign off on seizure orders last week for multiple American bank accounts connected to PokerStars payouts. The court also issued subpoenas (warrants?) for two individuals to appear before a grand jury on June 18.

More…

While online poker forces and their internet freedom allies continue to fight a war of attrition in Kentucky, principals in Minnesota have not just called a cease-fire — the State halting efforts to force telecom companies to block citizen access to a random assortment of gambling-ish sites — but also the potential adversaries, who met face-to-face in St. Paul last week, seem to be forming a truce, looking for ways they can work together to regulate/tax online poker, etc. within Minnesota borders:

Minn. regulators drop bid to block online gambling [Associated Press via @ppapoker]

“We have not folded our hand,” said Andy Skoogman, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, where gambling regulators are housed. He said he expects new strategies for regulating Internet gambling to emerge.

“The action raised awareness of the broader issue about who is policing the Internet and protecting the consumer,” he said. “At this point, we don’t feel there is anybody. This is an issue that every state is going to face sooner rather than later.”

Fans of the National Football League probably didn’t start off on the right foot anyway, since football is done for awhile and they’re forced to see baseball games/references everywhere. But there is another source of annoyance for NFL’ers, and that is the knowledge that the biggest opponent of online gaming in the United States is their very own football organization.

The NFL has promised to fight any effort by Rep. Barney Frank to push legislation that legalizes online gaming. With a lobbyist, an office in D.C., and a PAC donation committee in place, the NFL is ready to fight online gaming with the help of the Christian Coalition and Rep. Harry Reid of Nevada. Wait…What? Reid on the same side of this fight as Bob Goodlatte? Yessirreee.

Well, one NFL fan in particular sees the ridiculousness of it all. Dan Boone, of Bleacher Report:

The NFL, always a bright beacon of morals in a blighted land, has decided to self-righteously step into the public morals debate. The NFL does not want a bill allowing online gambling, that is a current bill legalizing poker, to pass.

The NFL behemoth is so against people playing online poker that they have hired a high priced Washington Lobbyist, opened a DC office, and set up a PAC Donation committee to help its noble cause.

So that’s where ticket increase money goes. That’s why the stadium beers are nine bucks and the exhibition games are full priced flops. Perhaps that explains the PSL’s. The league needs just craves some spare change to pay some politicos for favors.

Read the rest of “NFL Declares War on Poker” here.

Five arrested at a home game … and here, a news report showing local officials trying to explain the concept of rake and why it’s bad:

(via Poker Players Alliance)

One of the groups opposing all things legal-pokery in Texas is the Texas Eagle Forum, which recently spoke out against a bill for full-on casinos in Texas:

From Texas Weekly:

Texas Eagle Forum President Cathie Adams, telling the Houston Chronicle what she thinks about the job growth projected if casinos are legalized: “Why in the world would we want our children to grow up to be card dealers and waitresses?”

So there you have it. OK, now we know where we stand. As much as I like to soapbox about the issues not being moral contentions so much as money and tax-chip-shifting and legally acceptable pocket-lining, Cathie lets us know it really is a cultural issue — one where our opponents see professional casino employees and service industry workers as lesser people who have chosen a life-path their parents couldn’t be proud of. The good side is that she makes our competition seem weak. The bad side is she represents the types of landmines that poker interests will have to maneuver through no matter how well we’re playing.

KTRH-AM 740 out of Houston followed up the Morning News story about our efforts to legalize poker in Texas with one of their own. In their piece, the opposition claims we poker liberators* are simply seeking a regressive tax that will punish the poor, and calls government “weak” for even considering legalization as an alternative to cracking down.

*my term, not theirs

And now, on the front page of KTRH’s website, their question of the day is:

Should Texas add poker to its gaming lineup?

Click here to vote. At the time of this posting, we’re leading 63-37 … as all of us who understand the skillful application of percentages can surmise, this is hardly the spread of domination we’re looking for. Seriously, I’m sorry to keep whining about this … but it’s a one-and-a-half-click vote … if we can’t nail this one down, we don’t stand a chance in Austin this year.

NOTE: This seems to be a very conservative radio station.

UPDATE: Encouraging, what their forum has to say.

As many of you probably know, one of President Barack Obama’s first acts even before assuming office was creating a National Suggestion Box. And though I am concerned that they’ve already forgotten about it (they haven’t yet changed the header at Change.gov from “President-Elect” to “President”), an issue that’s jumped way up to the top of the list is repeal of the UIGEA. Though I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, the only folks who seem more motivated are the pot smokers.

Anyhow, you can see all the poker related posts at Change.gov via an on-site search for poker or UIGEA. Or just click “most popular” — where they’ve assigned a point system to all the ideas in America and poker has cracked the top 10. The list of issues attracting the squeakiest wheels, in order (with the number of comments in parentheses):

1. Ending Marijuana Prohibition (3,550)
2. Commit to becoming the “Greenest” country in the world (199)
3. Stop using federal resources to undermine states’ medicinal marijuana laws (17)
4. An end to the government sponsored abstinence education to be replaced by an introduction of age appropriate sex education. (158)
5. Bullet Trains & Light Rail (434)
6. The permanent closure of all Torture facilities. (Facilities such as: Guantanamo, and Abu Ghraib) (119)
7. Revoke the George W. Bush tax cuts for the top 1 % (119)
8. Get the Insurance Companies out the Health Care (362)
9. Revoke the Tax Exempt Status of the Church of Scientology (545)
10. Bring Back the Constitution! (243)
11. Boost America’s Economy with Legal Online Poker (1,713)

UPDATE: We dropped off the front page, from #9 to #11, in the course of my writing this post. I’d say “damn Constitution!”, but that probably wouldn’t help our cause. You can still vote — here’s a link to page 2 of the list, though hopefully it will become an irrelevant link by Monday morn.

Pete Campana, esq.

We clearly have our first finalist for Best Poker Lawyers ’09: Pete Campana of Williamsport, PA, successfully defended two clients caught up in an undercover police investigation into a $1/$2 NL game held in a garage (a dealer and a garage operator) on the grounds that they couldn’t have been engaged in any sort of gambling under Pennsylvania law — because poker is a game of skill.

Click here to read the complete ruling. (via PPA-premium.)

But in a nutshell, what Campana convinced successfully convinced the courts:

Commonwealth and Defendant both agree the controlling issue is whether Texas Hold’em poker is “unlawful gambling” under the Crimes Code.

… the controlling sub-issue is whether Texas Hold’em is a game of skill or chance, or, if both, does skill trump chance or vice-versa. Simply, if chance predominates, Texas Hold’em is gambling. If skill predominated, it is not gambling.

… Pennsylvania courts have not specifically addressed the issue … Our courts have found that poker is gambling within the context of the Liquor Code.

… With the advent of internet poker and tournament poker has come a spate of very intrusive law review analyses of gambling law and poker.

… Using the predominance test, in conjunction with analyzing skill versus chance using the four prong dominant factor test, it is apparent that skill predominates over chance in Texas Hold’em poker.

… Skill comes with varying degrees of competence, but that is the case with any competition involving skill.

The academic studies and experts generally agree that a player must be skillful to be successful at poker. At the outset, chance is equally distributed among the players. But the outcome is eventually determined by skill. Successful players must possess intellectual and psychological skills. They must know the rules and the mathematical odds. The must know how to read their opponents “tells” and styles. They must know when to hold and fold and raise. They must know how to manage their money.

This court finds that Texas Hold’em poker is a game where skill predominates over chance. Thus, it is not “unlawful gambling” under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code.

Who says poker and pie can’t peacefully co-exist in Branson?

The frontlines in the the War on Poker (or maybe now we should start calling it the War for Poker?) are always shifting … but currently there’s quite the firefight going in what might seem the most unlikely of places: Branson, Mo., which you may recall from an episode of The Simpsons, is “like Vegas … if it were run by Ned Flanders”.

At issue is what to do with upwards of a quarter-million dollars designated for a PR event to bring positive exposure to Branson tourism. With instructions from regional officials to think “outside the box”, the leading contender right now is a three-day “Great American Pie Show”. But the editor of the Branson Courier is calling instead for a squeaky good-clean $150,000 No-Limit Texas Hold’em freeroll.

What if that hand were playing against a hand that held one of the largest non-alcohol, smoke free, and free Texas Hold-em Tournaments ever, with a minimum of $150,000 in prizes? The governing word here being “free,” no pay to play. Given the same level of funding, promotion, and community effort as the pie show, in terms of the potential number of people that the event could bring to Branson and the value of the PR Branson could get, which ranks higher, the pie show or the tournament?

Nice! At first I was gonna kinda joke/be serious in saying they should definitely go with the pie. But then I kept reading what The Ole Seagull had to say (awesome name for an editor, btw), and realized this is an incredibly good sign when some of the most conservative folks in Americana (and poker’s opposition’s base) are starting to consider the game in the following context:

Now let’s not get all emotional, hostile, and judgmental about the morals of gambling and how it will destroy our community. We’re only talking about one three day event. Besides, isn’t gambling used for charitable purposes by some organizations within the Branson community to further the good works and services performed by them? That brings two things to mind.

The first is, “Would these organizations use gambling as a method to raise funds if they thought gambling was morally wrong, after all, what kind of example would that set for the community?” The second is, “Why base a charitable event around gambling in the first place?” An Ole Seagull would respectfully answer, in order, by saying, “No” and “Because it’s a fun entertainment thing that people like to do and helps attract people to the event.”

I recently discovered some new tricks on YouTube, so … In what is sure to be as critically acclaimed as Lucky You, here’s a glimpse of the American political system in action, as seen at a semi-private PPA get-together on Day 1B of the 2008 WSOP main event (July 4th) … where a poker activist braintrust confabbed down the hall, in the Palazzo Suites, about Beltway procedure and parliamentary strategy moving forward:

(click twice for bigger)

A moving and dramatic civics lesson, to be sure. Starring Al D’Amato, Howard Lederer, and Annie Duke. Special appearances by Phil Hellmuth and Jeffrey Pollack as The Commish.

Nice statement from the Poker Players Alliance just came across the transom. We’ll see if it leads to more coverage of our issue in the non-poker political press. Regardless, I think historically November ’08 will be seen as a period where everything changed for the industry (for better or worse is yet to be determined) … probably the most significant period since Sep/Oct ’06.

Statement by PPA Chairman D’Amato on “60 Minutes” and Washington Post Coverage of the Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet Cheating Scandals

Washington, D.C. – “The recent cheating scandals underscore the need for U.S. licensing and regulation of online poker to help protect consumers. While even the most highly regulated industries are susceptible to fraud and abuse, regulation does provide assurances that when consumers are harmed they have recourse, and that the offenders will be sanctioned. The continued pursuit of poker prohibition, on the other hand, will only drive this industry underground. As the Washington Post pointed out, prohibition represents a widening disconnect between 21st-century technology and 20th-century laws.

More…

From APCW.org:

Here come the UIGEA regulations! And not a moment too soon, either! What else would the Republicans do with their last few days in power? Also, a brief look at Casinomeister’s 50th Birthday in London!

The PPA always seems to be doing something every day on our behalf — and now they’re looking to pull together some sort of class-actiony lawsuit against the UIGEA. I like it! Why not be the aggressor in the courts, instead of always playing defense?

Here’s the word that just came over the D’amat-phone:

Dear Dan,

Yesterday, in a move reminiscent of 2006 when the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act [UIGEA] legislation passed in the dead of night, the Bush Administration finalized the UIGEA regulations. These so called “midnight rules” are set to go into effect on January 19th, 2009, the day before President-Elect Obama takes office. Even though the President stated many times he was against midnight rulemaking, his actions undermine those words.

Right now, the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) is preparing for a potential lawsuit against the UIGEA because its vagueness will likely force banks and other payment processors to over-block lawful Internet poker transactions. Thusly, the PPA is looking for a few good men and women to stand with us in a potential lawsuit. As a paid PPA member, your support has been crucial to our successes. The PPA is prepared to underwrite the complete cost of potential litigation we just need members like you to be part of our action.

More…

As per the PPA and Al D’amato’s request, I made my call to the Feds to weigh in on tonight’s planned attempts to strengthen the UIGEA and extend its reach. The call kinda reminded me of calling PartyPoker Customer Service back in the day, with less of an Indian accent, of course … I can only hope someone was listening.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Really, what a night we have in store … heads-up between two Europeans (one from a Socialist country, and another who was born into Communism) for the lion’s share of 14 million American dollars — and, of course, as said by Drew Barrymore two years ago, the World Championship of Poker! At the same time, the remnants (and some new blood) of the anti-democratic-process insurgents pro-UIGEA forces will be trying to further remove the poker industry’s foothold here in the country that gave birth to the game.

You gotta wonder … Is this part of that huge transfer of wealth out of America we’ve been hearing so much about?

(And if anyone knows where we might be able to follow this — right now I’ll be checking the PPA website, but maybe something’s on Cspan? — please let us know.)

Well, to be truthful, it coulda been a lot worse! On first glance, it may look like Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear has won this court case… but not so fast. While it’s true that the court upheld the state’s right to seize the domain names, the did give online gambling company’s an out! Tune in to see!

We also release the results of our Bodog cash out audits to see how long it really takes for players to get their money… plus ask why so many online gamblers seem to be in favor of electing John McCain!

From APCW.org: