Several CardSquad readers pointed us to several different sources who all have the same very bad news: Republican Jim Leach of Iowa's bill to eliminate online gaming passed the House Financial Services Committee, and is set to go to the full house for a vote.

If the bill is signed into law, it would "prohibit gambling establishments from accepting credit cards, checks, wire transfers, and electronic funds transfers in support of gaming transactions," according to Lou Krieger.

I know that Congress is very busy providing oversight on the White House, and working very hard to address their growing corruption scandals,  so I'm very impressed that Congress is taking time and focusing their energy on eliminating what is clearly a pressing national problem. I mean, how many times have you taken a moment to stop talking about our flag-burning epidemic to wonder when Congress is going to step in and make it illegal for people like us to play poker online with our friends or for fun or profit?

As I wrote earlier in the week, this is equal parts political theater and classic mafia-style shake-down: Congress wants the online gaming sites to play ball and start lavishing them with lobbyist dollars, and douchebag Congressmen like Rep. Leach need to send out press releases which play to thier base and deflect attention away from what a miserable failure Congress has been in the last five years.

Lou Krieger adds, "According to Rep. Leach, "H.R. 4411 will create strong tools to help federal and state governments enforce existing gambling prohibitions. Unlike in brick-and-mortar casinos in the United States where legal protections for bettors exist and where there are some compensatory social benefit in jobs and tax revenues, Internet gambling sites principally yield only liabilities to Americans."

Leach’s words appears to be a call of sorts for legislation that would regulate online wagering. But his bill offers no regulatory solution whatsoever. Instead of regulating and taxing a growing, multi-billion dollar business, his approach seeks to eliminate it.

The efforts designed to outlaw online gaming appear to mirror our national effort to outlaw alcohol in an earlier era.

It was a law almost no one supported. It led to the growth of organized crime in this country. And in the end, it was simply repealed."

This is a law that the overwhelming majority of Amercans do not want, and we certainly do not need. Prohibition did not work in the 1920s, and it will not work today.

Millions of Americans play online poker. If this bill becomes law, those millions of Americans will not stop playing; we'll just find a different way to cash out and fund our accounts. Does Congress really want to make us into criminals?