The federal government has no business in online sports gambling
Key takeaways
- Congress s activities would be limited to those enumerated in the 18 clauses in Article I, Section 8 of the new compact.
- In the intervening 240 years, the government in Washington, D.C., has ventured out to regulate an ever-greater share of the American economy and American life, straying ever further from its constitutional mandate.
- Congress s next quarry is online sports gambling.
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
Mc Garry, opinion contributor - 06/27/26 9:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied by David B. Mc Garry, opinion contributor - 06/27/26 9:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied Adobe Images The Founding Fathers wagered that a government of limited and defined powers could withstand the expansionary tendencies of democratic politicking. That proposition has been tested many times, including with respect to online sports betting today.
When Publius undertook in the essays known today as the Federalist Papers to defend the drafted, but not yet ratified, Constitution against its antifederalist foes, he fiercely maintained that the new federal government would wield only those powers granted explicitly to it. Congress s activities would be limited to those enumerated in the 18 clauses in Article I, Section 8 of the new compact.
Publius s position has proven too optimistic. In the intervening 240 years, the government in Washington, D.C., has ventured out to regulate an ever-greater share of the American economy and American life, straying ever further from its constitutional mandate.