March Madness on the Straight Talk Express



Everybody all aboard the Straight Talk Express! Beep beep!

January 2000: "The end of legalized gambling on amateur sports may be near, as the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee approved the Amateur Sports Integrity Act last Thursday. … One of the main proponents of this bill is Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) [whose support of the bill] has been one of the main reasons why it has moved through the Commerce Committee so quickly."

April 2001: "U.S. Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) want federal legislation to outlaw gambling on popular college sporting events like the Final Four, the Rose Bowl and the College World Series. … Last year, similar legislation was introduced and gained overwhelming support from the committee, however never made it to the Senate floor."

March 2002: "As millions of fans across the country prepare for today's NCAA men's basketball Final Four to see how they fared in office pools, legislators and lobbyists are weighing the odds of banning gambling on college sports. The issue pits the powerful Nevada casino lobby against the NCAA and its congressional allies such as Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who say the legal betting on amateur sports at hundreds of Nevada casinos feeds illegal betting on campuses and on the Internet, leads to corruption of college athletes and sets students on the path to becoming problem gamblers."

May 2003: "Continuing his effort to curtail gambling on amateur sports, Sen. John McCain, Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today introduced legislation that would make it illegal to gamble on Olympic, college, or high school sports."

Et cetera.

Today at John McCain's website:



I really don't want to view McCain's "bracket," thank you.

Now here's the reason that McCain isn't a hypocrite: He wouldn't make NCAA pools illegal, because "they are zero-sum games, not for-profit enterprises." So...apparently it's not gambling he hates, as much as profit, which is certainly a curious position for a Republican presidential candidate.

Feel the Straight Talkin' goodness!



Beep beep!


[The hat tip goes to KO, who mentioned it on Countdown last night.]


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