States would have the option of trying to ban betting sites, but they'd be lured in with a promise of 14 percent of the betting take, with another 6 percent for Uncle Sam.
Sounds "good for gambling companies, but also bad for [real-life] casino prospects" and jobs, Dan Fee, former spokesman for the group that recently opened the SugarHouse Casino in Fishtown, told me.
Some powerful Republicans - Senate whip John Kyl (R., Ariz.), House Banking Committee chairman-in-waiting Spencer Bachus (R., Ala.), House Ways and Means boss-apparent Dave Camp (R., Mich.) - oppose the bill.
But Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) is a "wild card," according to Mills. McConnell's beholden to his state's "vibrant horse-track industry," and it "could become difficult for him to oppose it," said Mills. That's why "He has avoided taking a strong stance [so far]."
Closer to home, Pennsylvania's gambling industry is wondering what impact last month's failure by Harrah's owner Caesars Entertainment to help its private-equity investors sell shares to the public, at an offering price of $15-$17, will have on its prospects for managing the long-delayed Foxwoods casino in South Philadelphia.
Caesars and its Harrah's casinos are already loaded down with more than $20 billion in debt. If the equity value of the group has fallen, will it be able to get additional credit to finance projects like Foxwoods?
The IPO failure brings "no change in Caesars Entertainment's interest or ability to contribute and manage development projects," asserts company spokeswoman Jacqueline Peterson.
Paycheck mortgage
Ami Kassar is tired of saying no.
