Will Obama Bring A Poker Change?

It is no secret that newly sworn-in President Barak H. Obama is an avid fan of poker. In the weeks leading up to his inauguration, Obama and his transition team set up a website (change.org) where members of the public could post messages and ideas in an online discussion forum.

It was clear that the poker playing public, especially those who desire to be able to play poker online, wanted to see a reversal of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) instituted under the previous administration. Many players flocked to the website to demand that Obama lift the online gaming ban as soon as possible.

So many people have voiced their opinion on this subject that it may be too difficult for President Obama to ignore. Of the tens of thousands of items posted on the website, over 2,000 related to poker and/or the UIGEA legislation. 

Many players have expressed their opinion via the website. Some of these include calls to “legalise online poker, which is not ‘gambling’ but a skill game, even a sport” and “let online poker players in the United States play legally and without fear of prosecution”. 

It seems that President Obama is left in a tough situation. This issue is high on the agenda of poker playing communities and given that people have expressed their opinion in such huge numbers, it would be difficult for Obama to ignore. If he does ignore this for the moment, he may face a backlash from the poker playing public. 

In the coming weeks and months, it will be interesting to see how Obama deals with life in his new job at a critical time in his nation’s history. With the economy on the ropes and issues to be dealt with worldwide, the poker players of America have voiced their feelings on the right to play online clearly and loudly. Will Obama bring change? Poker players will wait and see.