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Blanco stakes out vehement opposition to gambling bills
Published: 2006-04-23
 BATON ROUGE, La. -- In the aftermath of two horrific hurricanes, the governor has chosen an interesting issue for a hard-line stance: gambling.
Gov. Kathleen Blanco staked out her position on the opening day of the regular legislative session, announcing to lawmakers that she would veto any bills that she deems an expansion of gambling. Her top attorney reasserted that stance last week, announcing in a House committee that at least three bills fit that category in Blanco's estimation.
The hard and fast position was noteworthy because the governor often responds to questions about her feeling on bills by saying she'll wait to see the will of the Legislature before she makes any decisions.
"To me, it seems like it's relatively out of left field," said Elliott Stonecipher, a Shreveport pollster and political analyst.
Lawmakers questioned why Blanco would assert the line so strongly before any of the bills came up for debate, saying it would serve only to alienate some legislators _ and lobbyists. Plus, Blanco could have waited until a gambling bill arrived at her desk and vetoed it, rather than inserting herself into the issue so early.
"She should wait to do that after the bill actually gets to her," said Rep. Warren Triche, sponsor of one of the gambling bills Blanco opposes. Triche, D-Thibodaux, said the governor overstepped her bounds by trying to torpedo the legislation.
Longtime gambling critic C.B. Forgotston applauded the governor's position, saying Blanco kept her campaign pledge that she would not support expanding gambling.
It's unclear whether the position will win Blanco many points from the general public since gambling isn't necessarily a big political issue right now in a hurricane-ravaged state that already has video poker, slot machines at race tracks, riverboat casinos, a land casino in New Orleans and a lottery.
Stonecipher said Blanco seems to have picked the topic as a way to return to the moderate, slightly conservative position that got her elected in the first place, but he doesn't think it will help her regain voter support. "It doesn't matter," he said.
What is clear is Blanco picked a fight with an industry that adds a lot of tax dollars to the state's coffers and with lawmakers who supported the bills, and she alienated a group of powerful lobbyists who could have helped her with other legislation this session.
The governor who has been embattled since Hurricane Katrina and has faced significant struggles to get her proposals through the Legislature can ill afford to alienate anyone or start another fight.
Blanco did get part of her wish in the House Criminal Justice Committee. The video poker industry gave up on measures that would increase the number of video poker machines at truck stops and double the amount of money that could be bet or won on the machines.
However, Triche is pressing forward with his bill to allow bars and restaurants to hold the popular Texas Hold 'Em poker tournaments that the state's top liquor regulator says violate Louisiana's current gambling laws.
Also, lawmakers on the committee criticized Blanco for her opposition to the bills, saying they shouldn't be classified as a gambling expansion.
And the video poker industry scrapped its bills only after an irritated industry lobbyist blasted the governor, accused her of hypocrisy and pledged to push the bills again under Louisiana's next governor _ a seeming stab at Blanco's re-election chances in 2007.
"The governor wants to give pay raises to teachers and fund every program that comes down the pike and the way she does it is by saying, 'Well, we have increased gaming revenues to do it with,'" said Alton Ashy, a video poker lobbyist. "I think it's somewhat hypocritical for the governor to state that we're going to pad her political nest by getting teachers on board, but we're using dirty gambling money to do it."
The only lawmaker in the House committee who backed Blanco's position was Rep. Charlie DeWitt, D-Lecompte, who said the public would perceive the bills as boosting gambling in the state _ whether legislators believe they're an expansion of wagering or not.
But the committee sent the Texas Hold 'Em bill to the full House for debate, setting up an expected floor fight in the House.
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Red-hot PKR
Published: 2006-04-30
 Online poker is a phenomenon. People can’t get enough of logging on and having a dabble, sometimes even outside of those hallowed hours when drunk, overzealous Americans sign in to their preferred virtual casinos.
This is why a British company famed for its 3D constructions has entered the game with a mission to slay the competition with PKR.com.
The idea is simple: take the good elements of current poker websites (ie accessibility and playability) and combine them with a little semi-real-world interactivity.
To this end it provides an animated 3D front-end in the vein of a quality first-person shooter, which offers a variety of immersive environments in which to lose your hard-earned buck.
In the brief preview we had, we were blown away by the standard of the graphics – not quite Half-Life 2, but definitely some stiff competition for FarCry.
Initially, there will be six playing environments, including casino, cruise ship and beach. If you get bored of sitting around the table, you can go outside and check out the glorious sunshine glistening on the pool.
Chances are, though, you won’t get bored, as there’s plenty to do inside. You get to customise your character’s clothes and look, right down to accurate facial characteristics.
So, you can have your own poker visage at the virtual table. The 3D environment allows you to interact with opponents like never before – you can chat with gestures and facial expressions, and once you’ve proved yourself you can perform tricks with poker chips.
Oh, and you can also play poker for real cash or for fun. PKR claims there will be tournaments on a scale not yet seen in online poker, so it’s clearly taking the gambling aspect seriously.
Head to PKR.com to check out the video footage and more screenshots.
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