New Jersey made history Monday when the Legislature became the first U.S. legislature to authorize and regulate online gambling in the United States. If Gov. Chris Christie signs the bill, New Jersey will be the first state in the U.S. to authorize and regulate online gambling.
Christie’s has 45 days to sign or veto the bill. If Christie’s vetoes it, New Jersey’s legislature could overturn the veto. But the bill requires two-thirds votes in Congress and two-thirds in the Senate, and the politics of overturning the veto is tricky. Republicans who vote for an online gambling bill may not vote to overturn the governor’s decision. And because Democrats do not have a veto-proof majority in the Legislature, they are entirely likely to do so.
Christie is a rising star in the Republican Party and has been mentioned as a presidential candidate in 2012. If Christie is considering running for president, or even considering the position of vice president on a future Republican ticket, the online bill poses a serious problem to him. Christie knows that signing an online gambling bill would not fit in with conservative Republican supporters. In fact, it could keep him from even being considered for a position. So if Christie has national ambitions, he may be very likely to veto it. 메이저 토토사이트
If Christie is not worried about the national political impact, he will probably sign an online gambling bill. He is not against gambling, as he has been very active in improving the gambling industry in Atlantic City and New Jersey. Moreover, the bill was passed with widespread bipartisan support, and the legislature tends to get angry when their work is vetoed.
However, if Christie decides to veto the bill, he could be politically applied to the general legal ignorance surrounding online gambling. Although UIGEA specifically allows in-state online gambling, which is approved by New Jersey law, Christie would be able to argue that “he doesn’t want to potentially violate federal law” and get away with it. Most legislators have no idea what is illegal under federal law and what is illegal. It’s not their field of expertise. And if Christie says that his lawyers think it’s illegal, many legislators will accept that this is a legally ambiguous field and align with it. Combine the fact that the Department of Justice, which can provide such legal opinions, tends to consider all forms of online gambling to be illegal regardless of what UIGEA says, and you can get the political protection you need to veto it.