A group of 10 conservative and free market organizations co-authored a letter of opposition to the federal legislation backed by casino owner Sheldon Adelson that would outlaw Internet gaming in the U.S.
In the letter to the House and Senate leadership, the authors said passage of the Restoration of the Federal Wire Act legislation, would be "a broad overreach by the federal government over matters traditionally reserved for the states."
The letter was signed representatives of the Alliance for Freedom, Taxpayers Protection Alliance, Institute for Policy Innovation, Institute for Liberty, and five other like organizations.
"As we have seen in the past, a ban will not stop online gambling," the letter stated. "Prohibiting states from legalizing and regulating the practice only ensures that it will be pushed back into the shadows where crime can flourish with little oversight."
Adelson, chairman of Las Vegas Sands Corp., supports the legislation that would ban all online gaming and would shut down current legal Internet gaming operations in three states.