Online gambling battle will keep on.

Regardless of the recent setback suffered in House Financial Services Committee in his endeavor to amend the current online gambling legislation, the Democratic Representative Barney Frank says the battle isn’t over yet. On June 25^th, the UIGEA adversaries prepared to vote a revision that would help to prevent federal agencies from applying a series of regulations to implement the gambling ban approved by the U.S congress in 2006. Unfortunately, the amendment failed when the committee voted a 32-32 tie and the committee beaten Frank’s bill on the voice vote. Frank said the unexpected turnaround happened because the faction that supports the legalization of online gaming misjudged "the right wing of the Republican Party" and the pressure created by them to force the Committee’s determination on their favor.

"At this point, I'm waiting to see what the Republicans, who voted against this, plan to do after getting the heat for killing it. There is a great deal of discomfort between those on the business end of the Republican Party and those on the social conservative end of the party about this bill. A lot of Republicans wanted to vote for this, but they were pressured by their leadership to vote against it" Frank said.

An online poker and gaming campaigner who wanted to keep his name secret, said that Republican, Rep. Spencer Bachus, took the vote "extremely personally." Bachus stiffness towards a possible discussion regarding online gambling and massive pressure on other Republican representatives, including those who supported for the amendment, closed the door for what it was considered one of the most important steps in the bill’s amendment. However, Frank is convinced that time is his best ally.

But even if the amendment had passed the House Financial Services Committee, Frank recognized the bill would not have made it through the Senate. No matter how hard could be getting the House approval to abolish an Internet gambling ban, passing the bill in the Senate is much more complicated. Senator Jon Kyl from Arizona, who introduced the first Internet gambling bill in 1996, is already pushing the Treasury Department to complete the required regulations needed to implement the ban.

Former Senator and chairman of the Poker Players Alliance, Alfonse D'Amato has a more optimistic perspective of the House Financial Services Committee 32-32 vote that closed the door for a possible amendment.

"That's the best vote we've had so far on this issue, and I think it's a harbinger of good things to come. Unfortunately, some members felt pressured by him, but I do think that the responsibility ultimately rests with individual members for their votes." D'Amato said.