Bill Frist, the American Senate Majority Leader, is trying use a bill that authorizes U.S. military operations, including in Iraq and Afghanistan, to prohibit people from using credit cards to settle Internet gambling debts.
Frist, who is a republican senator from Tennessee, and his aides have been meeting with other lawmakers and officials in both the Senate and the House of Representatives to get the measure attached to a compromise Defense Department authorization bill.
In July, the House of Representatives passed a version of the Internet gambling measure. The Senate, however, has taken no action on similar legislation. Neither of the defense bills passed by the House and Senate mentions it.
Frist, who might be taking place in the presidential race in 2008, recently talked about the online gambling measure in the politically important state of Iowa and has also called it a legislative priority in a recent speech on the Senate floor.
Among the measure's supporters are the National Football League as well as conservative and antigambling groups, while some banking groups are lobbying against it.
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