What happened?
Friday October 13, 2006 President Bush signed a bill whose principal purpose is to tighten security measures for the nation's sea ports.
But attached to that bill at the very last minute - in order to prevent Democrats running for re-election next month from stopping it - was a federal ban on banking institutions knowingly transferring funds to businesses or individuals that may conduct gambling operations in states and areas where gambling is prohibited.
The "Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act" goes after the money, not the millions of players, which would be nearly impossible to enforce.
It will essentially try to choke off the way Americans fund their gambling habits, hoping to prevent the transfer of dollars to the popular Internet sites.
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