The Yanks Are Coming

May 18 (Bloomberg) -- A glimmer of common sense in the US perhaps. What next - an openly atheist Presidential candidate?

When U.S. Representative Jim McDermott went looking for revenue to improve foster care for kids, he said he stumbled on what may turn out to be a jackpot: a tax on Internet gambling.

McDermott is seeking to impose taxes on online poker and other Internet gambling that could bring the federal government as much as $42 billion over 10 years, according to a congressional analysis. States may collect as much as $30 billion, McDermott’s office estimates.

“It’s a human activity that people are going to do, and it’s a good place to pick up some dough,” said McDermott, a Washington Democrat, in an interview. “I’ve gotten a thousand ideas pumped at me about what we should do with the money.”

The House Ways and Means Committee tomorrow will consider his proposal, which depends on passage of a separate bill to legalize some Internet gambling and roll back a law designed to block wagering beginning June 1. That bill would let U.S. residents gamble online with companies licensed by the Treasury Department.