Alfonse D’Amato Distances Himself From Full Tilt Poker

It’s no secret to those who have covered the online poker industry for the past couple of years that Full Tilt Poker was a major contributor to the Poker Players Alliance, a grass roots organization chaired by former New York Senator Alfonse D’Amato. 

During Tuesday morning’s hearing before a House subcommittee to consider legalizing online poker in the USA, D’Amato went out of his way to distance himself and his organization from Full Tilt Poker, the disgraced online poker room that owes players millions of dollars following an April 15 indictment by the US Justice Department. 

Forbes.com noted that Full Tilt Poker’s Howard Lederer was once part of the PPA’s board of directors.  Another FTP shareholder, Chris Ferguson joined in a month later.  Both men are alleged by the US feds to have run an elaborate ponzi scheme in connection with Full Tilt Poker. 

When D’Amato was asked by Rep. Gregg Harper, a Republican from Mississippi, Whether the Poker Players Alliance received dues or contributions from either Full Tilt Poker or another delinquent online poker company, Ultimate Bet, the former New York Senator responded “No, we don’t.”

He added:  “One way to deal with Full Tilt and people like that who have taken advantage of the system is to provide a tough, strong, enforceable, licensing bill.”

It may have seemed at first that D’Amato came across looking like Pinocchio with that answer. 

Nathan Vardi of Forbes.com suggests otherwise: 

D’Amato is a skilled politician. His answer to Harper’s question was quick and seems to have been technically accurate. The PPA claims that Full Tilt Poker’s financial support of the PPA came through the Interactive Gaming Council, a Vancouver-based online gambling advocacy group that spent as much as $2.49 million annually lobbying in Washington, according to OpenSecrets.org. Those lobbying expenses do not include direct contributions the IGC made to the PPA. Full Tilt was one of IGC’s financial backers.

PPA President John Pappas noted that he believed Full Tilt Poker had stopped making contributions to the IGC in January of this year. 

- Chris Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher