The right to play online poker in the United States has always been a complicated matter. In the U.S. legislature, Democrat Barney Frank was always one of the biggest advocates for the practice. At 86 years old, he passed away last Tuesday (19). According to local press, the politician died at home, victim of congestive heart failure.
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However, in more than three decades in Congress, online poker was not Barney Frank’s only agenda. He was one of the pioneers in defending the rights of homosexuals and also worked on the creation of the Dodd-Frank law. The project emerged as a response to the financial crisis of the late 2000s, expanding consumer protection mechanisms.
However, his work for the regulation of online poker was tireless. In 2007, Barney Frank introduced a bill to block the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act), a law that restricted the operation of online poker sites in the United States.
Later, he was the author of the HR 2267 law, a project aimed at regulation, consumer protection, and oversight of online gambling. The main argument of the proposal was that poker is a game of skill, in which the luck factor does not remain predominant in the long term.
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The legacy of Barney Frank’s work
First elected in 1980, Barney Frank was no longer in office when the first legalized online poker sites were launched in the U.S. Even so, he continues to be seen by the community as a key figure in this long fight for regulation. The Democrat was always a declared supporter of the Poker Players Alliance.
Thus, for Barney Frank, the regulation of the practice on American soil would bring billions in tax revenue to the federal government. According to “PokerNews,” during the politician’s last term, he returned donations received from executives of the defunct Full Tilt Poker, one of the main names involved in the online poker “Black Friday.”
Finally, Frank’s work deserves the respect of the global poker community. In a time marked by prejudices against various practices, the politician’s progressive vision left an important legacy. He not only defended online poker but was also one of the first members of the United States Congress to publicly come out as homosexual and work on LGBTQIA+ issues.
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