April 9, 2010 (CAP Newswire) – In a case of very strange political bedfellows, the Poker Players Alliance (PPA), in its quest to prevent online poker from becoming illegal in the U.S. with the implementation of the UIGEA in June, is asking for support from Senator Jon Kyl.
Upon analysis, it may not be as crazy as it sounds. The alliance would be in the form of a deal in which the PPA would stop trying to delay the implementation of the UIGEA in exchange for Senator Kyl helping getting online poker exempted from the anti-online gambling laws.
“Our petition last time around wasn’t a slam dunk and we had to work extremely hard to get it done,” PPA Director John Pappas told PocketFives.com. “We don’t have the threat of Jon Kyl (pictured at left) holding up Treasury nominees now, so we’re trying to speak with Kyl to see what he would be willing to negotiate on. We’re hopeful that something can happen between now and June 1st.”
Pappas may have the political experience to pull off such an alliance: The PPA’s director has extensive experience working in Washington, working as a congressional communications director and spokesperson, among other roles. And he shares a home state with Senator Kyl.
“The PPA is going to submit a petition seeking that peer-to-peer games be excluded from the final promulgation of the UIGEA rules,” Pappas elaborated on the plan to Poker News Daily. “We need to get Jon Kyl to agree to this revision. It wouldn’t seek to delay the law, but it would clearly exempt poker and pari-mutuel dog and horse racing.”