The shifting political landscape for internet gaming legislation was altered again this week when US Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid received a huge re-election boost through the nomination of a ‘Tea Party’ conservative as his Republican opponent in Nevada.

Any effort to repeal the United States’ federal ban on internet gambling appears set for failure unless Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid changes his mind and agrees that online wagering can be effectively regulated.

The congresswoman who represents Las Vegas predicts the House next year will pass a bill to repeal an internet gambling ban, and refuses to rule out running against a beleaguered Nevada senator in 2012.

US Senator Bob Menendez tells GamblingCompliance now is a ‘propitious time’ for his bill to exempt poker from the United States’ online gambling ban and adds that he plans to offer his measure as a revenue-raising vehicle during an upcoming hearing of the Senate Finance Committee.

The battle in Congress over the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) is escalating, with the 2006 law’s chief architect blocking the approval of Treasury Department nominees in retaliation for the Obama administration’s recent delay in implementing the UIGEA regulations.

The chairman of the House Financial Services Committee has predicted that the implementation of federal regulations on internet gambling should cause enough turmoil to advance repeal legislation which his own Committee is now treating as a priority.

Gaming giants Harrah’s and Wynn Resorts believe the possibility of state lotteries moving into the online realm represents a threat to the commercial casino sector’s own internet gaming ambitions in the United States.

Another hearing on Internet gambling will occur before the House Financial Services Committee votes on a bill to overturn the 2006 prohibition of online wagering, a committee spokesman said this week.

US Rep. Barney Frank has carved out a national profile as a champion of internet gambling legalization, but back in his home state of Massachusetts, he has taken a low-key stance on the controversial issue.

With the deadline for enforcing regulations to block Internet gambling just 75 days away, Rep. Barney Frank still has not scheduled a vote by the House Financial Services Committee on his bill to legalize and regulate online wagering.