Antigua to make its case to a dozen Congressmen during conference

[The Buzz]

The International Herald Tribune is reporting that Antigua will lobby about a dozen members of Congress during an annual Caribbean business conference.

Antigua's government, which has accused the U.S. of crippling its gambling industry by effectively banning Americans from making online wagers, will raise the issue at the conference that begins Thursday and in private meetings with members of Congress, Finance Minister Errol Cort said.

The government also plans to invite the lawmakers on a tour of the Caribbean nation's Financial Services Regulatory Commission and some Internet gaming companies, Cort said.

Antigua hopes to prove to the visiting politicians that "we do have the capacity to adequately regulate these gaming operations," Cort told The Associated Press.

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/...t-Gambling.php

[The Buzz]

Looks like Antigua got a new ally in Charlie Rangel, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.

Rangel, who oversees tax legislation as chair of the Ways and Means Committee, said he worries Washington may have overstepped its authority in the long-running dispute.

"I think my country is wrong in trying to change the rules of the WTO," Rangel told local reporters. "Your great nation and ours will have to negotiate those differences in terms of equity and fairness."

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/...t-Gambling.php

NOTE: Rangel is not a cosponsor of Barney Frank's legislation (yet).