The postponed Congressional hearing on HR 707 aka the Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA) has been rescheduled for Wednesday, March 25 at 4pm ET.
RAWA, the Sheldon Adelson-backed legislation that would eliminate most forms of state-regulated online gambling, was originally scheduled for a hearing with the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations on March 5, but the threat of inclement weather convinced congressmen to get out of town and into a warm hot-tub somewhere safe.
The Subcommittee’s website has yet to unveil an official witness list, but early indications suggest the deck has been stacked with unquestioning RAWA supporters armed with dubious statistics and dystopian visions of online anarchy. However, Competitive Enterprise Institute scribe Michelle Minton tweeted that there would be “a demo on igambling tech earlier that day. A little reality B 4 the show.”
Since the original hearing was cancelled, there’s been no shortage of pushback by anti-RAWA forces. These included a resolution (HR 140) by Pennsylvania State Rep. John Payne urging Pennsylvania’s Congressional delegation to “unequivocally oppose” RAWA and any other legislation that seeks to curb individual states’ rights to offer intrastate online gambling.