- Joined
- Jan 14, 2008
- Messages
- 61,386
SOURCE- FULL STORY HERE
I hope he gets in!!
Though most people have never heard of it, the Office of Legal Counsel inside the Department of Justice (DOJ) is one of the most influential legal offices within the federal government. Described as the “President’s law firm,” OLC determines the constitutionality of executive action. Unfortunately, for the handful of lawmakers hoping to get OLC to create a federal prohibition on Internet gambling, Steven Engel—Trump’s nominee to head this powerful office—indicated during his confirmation hearing that would not be swayed by political pressure or convenience.
Sitting before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Engel described the importance of OLC in “ensuring that ours remains a nation governed by laws” and the job of OLC lead counsel as “advising the executive branch on the requirements of the law in order to fulfill the President’s constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” This could be a problem for those hoping to create an online gambling ban, like Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) who sits on the Judiciary Committee and has twice failed to enact legislation seeking to reverse a legal opinion issued by Obama’s OLC in 2011.
Graham and other online gambling opponents view the OLC’s 2011 opinion as a “reinterpretation” of the Wire Act; a law enacted by Congress in 1961 that sought to prohibit interstate sports gambling using the telephone. In reality, OLC’s opinion actually restored the Wire Act to its original intent. However, in clarifying the scope of this statute, it also paved the way for states to legalize non-sports related Internet gambling; something Graham and his benefactor, casino mogul and bigtime GOP donor Sheldon Adelson, want to see reversed.
The problem for Graham and friends is what they want would put Mr. Engel in the untenable position of 1) pretending Congress meant to limit online gambling – in 1961! – and 2) ignoring Congress’s purported interest in preserving state sovereignty.
I hope he gets in!!
Though most people have never heard of it, the Office of Legal Counsel inside the Department of Justice (DOJ) is one of the most influential legal offices within the federal government. Described as the “President’s law firm,” OLC determines the constitutionality of executive action. Unfortunately, for the handful of lawmakers hoping to get OLC to create a federal prohibition on Internet gambling, Steven Engel—Trump’s nominee to head this powerful office—indicated during his confirmation hearing that would not be swayed by political pressure or convenience.
Sitting before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Engel described the importance of OLC in “ensuring that ours remains a nation governed by laws” and the job of OLC lead counsel as “advising the executive branch on the requirements of the law in order to fulfill the President’s constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” This could be a problem for those hoping to create an online gambling ban, like Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) who sits on the Judiciary Committee and has twice failed to enact legislation seeking to reverse a legal opinion issued by Obama’s OLC in 2011.
Graham and other online gambling opponents view the OLC’s 2011 opinion as a “reinterpretation” of the Wire Act; a law enacted by Congress in 1961 that sought to prohibit interstate sports gambling using the telephone. In reality, OLC’s opinion actually restored the Wire Act to its original intent. However, in clarifying the scope of this statute, it also paved the way for states to legalize non-sports related Internet gambling; something Graham and his benefactor, casino mogul and bigtime GOP donor Sheldon Adelson, want to see reversed.
The problem for Graham and friends is what they want would put Mr. Engel in the untenable position of 1) pretending Congress meant to limit online gambling – in 1961! – and 2) ignoring Congress’s purported interest in preserving state sovereignty.
