Barney Frank, a former U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts, died at age 86 after spending the last few months in hospice care at his home in Ogunquit, Maine, following congestive heart failure. He served more than 30 years in Congress and was known as an outspoken advocate for poker. After Black Friday on April 15, 2011, he co-sponsored the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act of 2007, which aimed to federally license, regulate, and tax online gaming operators. The proposal followed the 2006 UIGEA, which prohibited operators from knowingly accepting payments for online gaming. Frank’s legislation sought an exemption to UIGEA and included licensing and rules intended to reduce underage and problem gambling while supporting honest games. The bill did not pass out of the House Financial Services Committee.
"No. 1, he's heroic because very seldom will you see somebody take on the establishment the way he has, and he's a powerful congressional chairman,"
"I don't think he went and counted up the poker players who live in his district, but this is as a principle saying, 'Who are you to invade a person's house? Who are you to say that one sport [horse racing], yes you can place wages on, but another one that involves skill that you're not allowed to.'"
"It's nonsense, and he sets up licensing requirements so that we regulate it, he sets up rules which will allow people to (minimize) underage and problem gamblers' ... participation. He sets up the kind of standards that you need to see that they are honest games. And so, he does the right thing. The unintended consequences of trying to ban it will create problems. So, it's a great bill."
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