Politics and poker has been weird fellows for the mid of year 2025. This week, Annie Duke attended congressional panel to verify the advantages of licensing and regulation of online gaming. Now, Andy Bloch of FullTilt Poker has allied forces with PPA at a conference about internet freedom. 

Last week, Andy Bloch was featured member of panel during Netroots Nation Conference 2025, which is presently being organized at Las Vegas. This conference is an opportunity for persons to discuss and gather present internet freedom concerns that country encounters. In his opening speech, Bloch said, “basically, if it is illegal to do in the real world, it should be illegal to do online. Unfortunately, that is not always the case when it comes to gambling”. Further, he also shed light on issue with present status of internet gambling and sports betting, and the strategy by Federal Government. 

Bloch continued to figure out how state and Federal governments and their strategy to internet gaming riddle are wrong, stating that governments have actually singled-out online gambling, and gambling for attack. 

Because this conference is concentrated on liberties, Andy Bloch asked a question that if one does not play poker, or is not an internet poker participant, why should they care about the issue?’ His entire presentation was focused on 3 basic concerns: 1) it is a problem of ‘basic freedom, if internet poker is not legal whilst other gambling categories are legal, why cannot the government choose what else should not be made unlawful online; 2) the efforts by government to prohibit internet gambling have side effects and implications on web; and 3) if one is keen in web freedom, they can learn from pokers skills to arrange and safeguard their fundamental rights.  

The testimony of Bloch on committee involved a story about playing an economical online ‘sit-n-go’ tournament with the participant who informed him regarding how he cannot travel on account of minor disability, but wanted to take part in poker. After concluding the story, he made the most stirring statement, ‘interactions like these are why protecting internet freedom is important, even when it is a freedom you might not take advantage or yourself or even understand”. 

After conference, Andy also issued press conference with Poker Players Alliance where they emphasized some of the opinions he expressed during the conference.  

The Poker Players Alliance is a sponsor of ‘Netroots Nation 2025’. It has been fighting for rights of players (poker) since before the regulation of UIGEA during 2006.