Problem gambling on Capitol Hill

Problem gambling leaves plenty of normal people vulnerable and exposed. How much more so the people on Capitol Hill who run our country?

In response to a proposed casino in Tysons Corner, less than 20 miles west of the nation’s capital in Northern Virginia, over 100 former spies and intelligence officers spoke up, saying foreign adversaries could exploit problem gamblers at the new casino in Washington, D.C. The area serves as the base of operations for the CIA and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Further, the area houses the Pentagon and offices of various defense contractors.

the casino could attract organized crime

The National Security Leaders for Fairfax group sent a letter to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin—as well as members of the Virginia State Assembly—admonishing them against the potential vulnerabilities that would come from the casino. In their view, the casino could attract organized crime and, worse, could give foreign adversaries an opening to blackmail US intelligence officers and other military personnel.

The letter reads: “With the Washington D.C. area having the greatest concentration of the most sensitive security clearances in the country, we urge you to immediately and categorically reject the proliferation of gambling establishments in Northern Virginia … as posing an unacceptable health and national security hazard, whose socioeconomic costs significantly outweigh any short-term increase in revenue.”

Anne Gruner is a CIA veteran with 25 years under her belt, who also co-chairs the National Security Leaders for Fairfax. She warns that federal workers who play at a nearby casino could soon find themselves facing problem gambling, which would leave them vulnerable to exploitation by foreign adversaries.

Gruner said: “These employees would become the focus of any intelligence collection and could become susceptible to extortion.”

Her warning comes from observations made throughout her career in which she has seen “security issues, problems with drinking,” and other behaviors that indicate vulnerabilities for federal workers.

Safeguards already in place

Some people insist that safeguards are already in place to prevent federal workers from being exploited for problem gambling. One such person is Dan Meyer, a partner at Tully Rinckey, PLLC, a law firm specializing in military and security clearance. Meyer asserts that federal workers must already abide by a set of security clearance guidelines that also serve to keep workers in line if they engage in problem gambling.

NPR reports that the guidelines “relate to issues like a person’s sexual behavior, alcohol consumption, criminal conduct, and their financial interests.”

that elite has to curtail its behavior while the rest of society decides what it’s going to do”

Meyer said: “There are a lot of clearances, but not everybody can get them and not everybody can keep them… So that elite has to curtail its behavior while the rest of society decides what it’s going to do in the various types of commercial activities it promotes.”

The checks go beyond keeping a security clearance, Meyer says, in order to specifically address potential problem gambling.

Meyer said: “If you win more than $10,000 in a casino, an e-mail is automatically sent to your security officer through the Financial Crimes Reporting Center… So if you have a great day at MGM Grand over there at National Harbor and you win $10,050, [on] Monday you’re going to be talking to your security officer and they’re going to ask you about your behavior and whether everything is all right.”