While Arizona’s Republican Senator Jon Kyl continues introducing legislation to prohibit online gambling, critics of the legislation say it will never succeed because the Internet gambling industry is far too lucrative and elusive for Congress to be able to control it at this stage.

Mark Lesnick, who runs StartCasino.Com, an informational site for prospective online casino operators and founder of Alternative Solutions for Reliable Online Commerce, had the following to say about it: “Seven times the United States tried to ban online betting and each time it failed”. He further added: “The industry is so lucrative any attempt by the U.S. government [to stop it] at this point would be too late”.

Senator Kyl is persistent, however, and, according to a spokesman in Kyl’s office, the Arizona senator plans to introduce legislation in the summer that is similar to previous bills he has tried to push through Congress. This summer’s legislation will most likely be similar to previous legislation, introduced by Kyl that attempted to shut down electronic funds transfers for online gambling.

Representatives of different gaming interests, such as the horse racing industry, tribal casinos and poker and sportsbooks, don’t plan to let Kyl introduce the legislation without a fight,though. The Congressional Horse Caucus, for example, recently sent a letter to the Arizona Congressman’s office, urging that legislation prohibiting Internet wagering exclude betting on horse races.

The Congressional Horse Caucus contends that off-track betting, including Internet and simulcast wagers, are “the lifeblood of the industry” and are protected by the Interestate HorseRacing Act.

The letter, signed by representatives John Sweeney of New York and Ben Chandler of Kentucky, asserts that “every recent version of Internet gambling legislation has contained clarification that its enforcement mechanism does not apply to account wagers on horseracing conducted pursuant to the IHA…. We believe that such clarifications are obvious steps to implement what has clearly been congressional intent for several years, and we strongly urge you to include such provisions in your bill”.

Even though most critics contend that the U.S. cannot realistically expect o have any significant control over the online gambling industry, Senator Kyl’s legislation has a greater chance of passing now because the Republicans currently control both the Congress and the White House. Tony Cabot, a Las Vegas attorney, whose clients include many horseracing interests, said that off-track betting accounts for three billion dollars a year in revenues and is responsible for the only growth in the horse racing industry today. “There will always be people who will be motivated to get around the prohibition”, he added.