Senator McCain Not a Good Poker Player

George Epstein, a noted Los Angeles teacher and author who has been inducted into the Seniors Poker Hall of Fame, has voiced his opinion about Senator McCain playing poker on his smartphone during an important congressional hearing in an article published in Gaming Today.

Senator John McCain, a staunch advocate of taking military action against Syria, was spotted playing mobile poker when testimonies of top administrative officers were being heard during a congressional session on taking military action against Syria, which stands accused using chemical weapons against its citizens and killing many of them, including over 400 children.

Making it quite clear that he is not interested in discussing the advantages and disadvantages of taking military action against Syria, he said that he is more interested in making two points clear as an advocate of online poker legalization and an avid poker player.

First, a representative of Arizona playing poker during a congressional session clearly conveys the message that poker in the US is legal. Thus, nobody can convince poker players in the US that playing poker should be considered illegal. If playing poker in the US is illegal, the Department of Justice (DoJ) should take action against the senator for violating the countries gambling laws. If the DoJ doesn’t take action against the senator, the US federal government cannot take any action against hundreds and thousands of US poker players who enjoy playing the game.

Epstein also pointed out that several US presidents loved playing poker. A list of American presidents who enjoyed playing poker includes Franklin D. Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore D. Roosevelt, Andrew Jackson, Woodrow Wilson, Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon, Lyndon Johnson, Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Dwight Eisenhower, Bill Clinton, as well as Barack Obama, the present president of the US.

The second point Epstein wishes to make is this: Senator McCain did not win the game of poker he was playing on his smartphone when he ought to have been listening to the testimonies. The senator’s skill as a poker player is unknown, but one of the reasons for not winning could have been that he was not concentrating on the game. He must have been partly listening to the testimonies.

In live poker rooms at land-based casinos, poker players often lose because they allow a football game or drinks and refreshments to distract them. When poker players allow external factors to distract them, they are well on their way to losing their game. The senator admitted that he “lost thousands of dollars in this game,” but quickly added that it was not real money. According to Epstein, this proves that “he is a better senator than he is a poker player.”

Most US citizens hold Senator McCain in high esteem. In fact, the people of Arizona had re-elected him as their representative. His voice in congressional sessions is the strongest, and he always has the best interests of the citizens at heart. But he proved in Congress that he is not at all a good poker player.

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