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VPP Announcements & News
| US Congressmen Urge Rollback of UIGEA - Friday, November 30, 2007 at 10:02
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Eight member of the US House of Representives, including Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank, have written U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab expressing concern about the USTR's handling the WTO dispute regarding the UIGEA. The lawmakers said they viewed the administration action "as a drastic step which could have significant consequences for the entire WTO system."
The concern is that Antigua and others, including potentially the European Union, could being exacting sanctions soon over the U.S. decision to withdraw from the World Trade Organization accord recognizing the legality of online gabling.
The USTR has claimed that US laws banning interstate gambling have been in place for decades and that the trade agreements do not force the US into commitments that are in direct conflict with its own laws.
Does anyone really think that the US would apply this standard to any other country that violates a trade agreement by claiming that it is in conflict with its own laws?
The letter from the 8 congressmen urged the USTR to work with Congress on this issue; hopefully this will help lead the way for Congress to reconsider the whole UIGEA issue.
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