Poker In the White House?
2007-09-24 16:28:34
By:
Gene Bromberg
Not that we're endorsing a particular Presidential candidate, but an
article today in the Associated Press goes into considerable detail about the poker career of Barack Obama. In the past other articles have mentioned that Obama plays poker, but this piece is almost entirely about how the traits Obama exhibited at the poker table have helped him become a political success.
Of course, the game of
poker is under siege by the U.S. government, what with the passage of the UIGEA and Bush Administration so far flaunting a WTO ruling that would require the U.S. to open it's markets to foreign gaming companies. There are hopes that the next President will take a less draconian view of online gaming, and at the very least Obama is someone who actually LIKES to play poker. Indeed, from the article we learn that:
"Obama was a regular at the low-stakes games--sometimes stud
poker, sometimes draw--designed to break up the tedium of long legislative sessions. Poker, beer and cigars were staples; Democrats and Republicans, lawmakers and even the lobbyists who Obama sometimes rails against dealt the cards and placed their bets."
I'm trying to think of the last time I saw Democrats and Republicans gather in true bipartisan harmony, and I think the date was September 11, 2001, on the steps of the Capitol. Before that and afterwards it's all been pretty much business as usual--you know, trying to rip out the other side's throat with lies and smears and disinformation. Could it be that
playing poker might have a humanizing effect on our elected officials, many of whom, to be honest, could only be described as putative humans? Could poker, in fact, save American democracy?
That's a post for another day (actually, that might be the subject of a book I should write), but at any rate Barack Obama sounds like your typical tight, solid poker player. From the article:
"By his poker buddies' accounts, Obama is careful and focused. He's not easily distracted and doesn't give away his intentions unless it's to his advantage. He's not prone to taking risky chances, preferring to play it safe. But he's also serious and competitive: When he plays, he plays to win."
And also:
"Obama studied the odds carefully, friends say. If he had strong cards, he'd play. If he didn't, he would fold rather than bet good money on the chance the right card would show up when he needed it."
Now, some of the wags who populate the
poker message boards would call Obama a "nit" who doesn't have any gamble in him. Then again, do you really want a President who sits down in the biggest game and tries running over the table with crazy bluffs? Do we want as the Leader of the Free World a player eager to come over the top with just a gutshot draw? Our current President has shown a propensity to overplay some pretty thin hands and, well, we've seen how well that's worked out.
The election isn't for another...good Lord...it's not for another FOURTEEN MONTHS. So we're a long, long way to seeing a President Obama take the Oath of Office. But if he does find a way to win election to the highest office in the land, one of his former poker buddies said that he's "hoping that maybe one night we'll have (a poker game) in the White House."
A
poker game in the White House. And the chances of the cops busting the game very low indeed, what with the Secret Service and all. Of course some anti-gaming legislators will probably call for impeachment proceedings, but I think most members of Congress will be angling for invites to the game. What better way to sway Congress' mind about poker than to have it's members PLAY the game? Slowly but surely, the tide is turning.
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