Washington — The casino industry and its opponents clashed Thursday over a report charging that campaign cash was the decisive factor last year in keeping Congress from outlawing betting on college sports.
The skirmish marked the beginning of a renewed dispute over legislation that the gambling industry considered its main threat in the 106th Congress, and which will likely be a major point of contention in the 107th.
In its report, the consumer group Public Citizen said casinos lavished money on both political parties last year. While the cash flowed in, Democratic and Republican leaders competed to see which side could deliver the knockout blow to the bill, the group said.
"This is the most transparent and blatant illustration of how soft money corrupts our politics," said Steve Weissman, a co-author of the report.
Public Citizen was founded by Ralph Nader, who attacked corporate influence in politics in his Green Party presidential campaign last year.
Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., who lobbies for casinos as president of the American Gaming Assn., said the report is "filled with innuendo, half-truths and whole lies in order to support Public Citizen's anti-gaming and pro-campaign reform agenda."
But Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a chief sponsor of the proposed ban, agreed with the report's central contention that political contributions helped derail the bill. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., plans to reintroduce the bill in the Senate.
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