Follow the House Judiciary Committee Hearing LIVE

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We will be blogging Wednesday's (10 a.m. ET) House Judiciary Committee Hearing hearing on "Establishing Consistent Enforcement Policies in the Context of Online Wagers" live on this thread, pulling out the key points for GPWA members. Hopefully, this helps people who are not able to see the hearing live. We'll also post the webcast link when it becomes available. No witness list has been published for the hearing.

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Here's the link for the live webcast. I'm going to grab a bagel and settle in for the morning.

http://boss.streamos.com/real-live/j...141_070212.ram

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Before I get the bagel, here's the witness list:

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="12"><tbody><tr><td>The Honorable Shelley Berkley
U.S. House of Representatives Nevada, 1st District </td> </tr> <tr> <td> The Honorable Bob Goodlatte
U.S. House of Representatives Virginia 6th District </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Panel II:
</td> </tr> <tr> <td> The Honorable Catherine Hanaway
United States Attorney
Eastern District of Missouri
U.S. Department of Justice </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Joseph Weiler
New York University
School of Law </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Tom McClusky
Vice President of Government Affairs
Family Research Council </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Valerie Abend
Deputy Assistant Secretary
Critical Infrastructure Protection and Compliance Policy
U.S. Department of the Treasury </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Annie Duke
Los Angeles, CA </td> </tr> <tr> <td> Michael Colopy
Aristotle</td></tr></tbody></table>Annie Duke's profession isn't listed, but she's professional poker player.

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Never did get that bagel. Sigh. But the hearing is about to start.

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Conyers is introducing the issue. He says gambling is a social ill, but their severe problems with the selective enforcement of gambling laws. And he just said the only organized group not represented here are the craps shooters.

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Rep. Lamar Smith is discussing the dangers of Internet gambling. Calls the fronts for money laundering and terrorists. The also attract young people and compulsive gamblers. Says kids can play without age verification and it leads to addictive gambling. He also says the UIGEA has reduced Internet gambling in the U.S., thus fulfilling the goal of the law.

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Conyers is skipping over Congress Bob Wexler for now.

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Congressman Berkley is up next. She's proposed legislation to study Internet Gambling and see if it should be regulated.

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She's just called the U.S. laws regarding Internet gaming absurd and inconsistent. She says the UIGEA has made things worse, targeting the financial sector and creating a hypocritical carve out for horse betting.

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She says reputable operators have been driven out, while everyone continues to wager online. And doing so without the benefits of regulatory oversight.

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She's bringing up the WTO case now, saying the U.S. is on the hook for a substantial amount of money, and says this is the trade equivalent of "taking our ball and going home." She wants to legalize online gaming subject to regulation that protects the youth and problem gamblers.

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Now she's referencing the study she's proposed to determine the effects of Internet gaming. She wants unbiased information for the Congress to consider.

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She represents a Congressional district in Vegas, and says gambling is everywhere there and she's not interested in gambling. She says people have a right to play in their own home whatever recreational activity they want. And that there's technology to handle age verification. And she says gambling is not a social evil, disagreeing with Chairman Conyers.

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Berkley is a passionate, dynamic speaker. A very good advocate for the gaming industry.

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Rep. Goodlatte is up next.

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Goodlatte has been a vocal opponent of online gambling for some time.

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He says Internet gambling is worse than brick-and-mortar gambling because it takes place in Internet, which is not regulated. He said Internet gambling in particular causes more problem gambling. He is testifying the UIGEA gives teeth to state laws that prohibit Internet gambling.

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Goodlatte says there was plenty of debate in the House over this issue, and that it was done in the open. He said the UIGEA was only piece of the broader House bill and says card play among college-age students has declined -- citing an Annenberg survey. He also says problem gambling symptoms have declined from 20.4% to a little over 5% in just a year.

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Also claims NETeller's withdrawal following the arrests of its founders as a success story.

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Goodlatte also said the son one of his constituents committed suicide after becoming a problem gambling.