Politicians don’t typically spend a lot of time talking about the needs of professional gamblers. But they are now — and their fight over a little-known provision in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act that will hit high rollers with a new tax penalty is worth watching because it’s exposing the many tensions within MAGA.
There are the socially conservative Republicans who don’t like gambling. The libertarian Republicans who don’t care. The Republicans who say they are for the working class, including casino workers. The business-friendly Republicans who see an opportunity in an industry that made $72 billion in revenue last year, according to the American Gaming Association.
