Chris Christie stands up for fantasy sports betting at GOP debate
In Wednesday's GOP debate, CNBC's Carl Quintanilla asked Jeb Bush about the scandal surrounding daily fantasy sports leagues and insider trading, and Bush bragged that his fantasy football team is undefeated, 7-0. He added that if there is insider trading that's robbing people of money, the federal government or at least the NFL should look into it: "Effectively, it's day trading without any regulation at all."
Chris Christie (R-N.J.), governor of a state with a sizable gambling industry, disagreed. "Are we really talking about getting the government involved in fantasy football?" he said. The U.S. has a huge national debt, is fighting ISIS and al Qaeda, and is still grappling with too much unemployment, Christie argued, "and we're talking about fantasy football? Can we stop?" The government should be doing its job — "secure our borders, protect our people, and support American values and American families" — Christie said. "Enough on fantasy football. Let people play. Who cares?" Watch below. Peter Weber
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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