新泽西州参议员詹姆斯雷Lesniak在华盛顿举行的首脑会议上为在线赌博游戏和彩票政策进行辩护。Lesniak发表了主题演讲，提议国会通过一项赌博法案，他认为这样做对新泽西州的经济发展至关重要。
今年初Lesniak提交了一项赌博法案，以规范新泽西州内的网上赌博。该法案通过了州参议院和众议院，但是却被彭定康克里斯蒂否决。克里斯蒂说，他行使否决权是因为他认为该项法案违反了联邦宪法。联邦法案明确说明，赌博只能在大西洋城界限进行。
克里斯蒂反对在线赌博法案的想法让Lesniak觉得很可笑。政府怎么可以通过禁止网上赌博来保证人民和国家安全呢？“如何不关闭互联网，我们如何能杜绝网上赌博呢？”他问。就比如美国禁止饮酒，但这并没有人们减少饮酒。
Lesniak在给美国马里兰州州长马丁奥马利的一封邮件邮件中指出，联邦政府的在线赌博的监管制度会严重影响马里兰州的经济形势，会减少州政府的财政收入。所以Lesniak呼吁马里兰州州长马丁奥马利能与他共同努力，推动新的在线赌博法案通过国会审议。Lesniak甚至还明确表示，如果联邦政府不允许新泽西州规范网上赌博，他会持续作战到底。
译文
New Jersey state senator Ray Lesniak defended his state and his online gambling legislation today at the Digital Gaming & Lottery Policy Summit, held in Washington, D.C. Lesniak delivered the keynote address, blasting gambling critics and standing up for policy he believes is vital for New Jersey’s economy.
If you remember the stories covered extensively here at OnlineCasinoSuite.org, earlier this year Lesniak sponsored a bill to regulate online gambling at the intrastate level. Once it passed the state Senate and House, though, Governor Chris Christie used a conditional veto to strike it down. Christie said that the veto was because he was concerned that the legislation violated the state constitution, which says that gambling can only be conducted within the limits of Atlantic City.
Regarding opposition to online gambling, Lesniak laughed off the idea that the government can make the country safer by preventing people from gambling online. “We couldn’t shut down Al Capone or bootlegging. How can we shut down the Internet?” he asked. The quest by some to prohibit online gambling is often compared to when the U.S. prohibited alcohol, which did little to reduce drinking but did empower organized crime.
Lesniak also echoed the sentiments of Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, who said in a letter to Congress that federal online gambling regulation would hurt the industry in Maryland, reducing the state’s revenue and costing jobs. Lesniak put it more bluntly, saying that if New Jersey fails to regulate online gambling and the federal government does, his state is screwed.
