As you probably know, Las Vegas Sands chief Sheldon Adelson (pictured) is on the cusp of launching what could be a large-scale crusade against the legalization and regulation of online gambling in the United States. In fact, he told Forbes last month he was willing to spend “whatever it takes” to battle the industry.

“I am willing to spend whatever it takes,” Adelson warned. “My moral standard compels me to speak out on this issue because I am the largest company by far in the industry and I am willing to speak out. I don’t see any compelling reason for the Government to allow people to gamble on the internet and nobody has ever explained except for the two companies whose special interest is going to be served if there is gaming on the internet, Caesars and MGM.”

Adelson seems to have plenty of cash with which to wage war, as according to a separate Forbes article published this week, his net worth increased 68% in 2013, or $15 billion in real money, to settle at $37 billion. Live gambling has been his bread and butter over the last 12 months, according to Forbes, which reminded us, “His fortune grew by a staggering $41 million a day. Adelson added more to his fortune than any other person, thanks largely to the success of his casinos in Macau and Singapore, which led to stellar financial results.”

The next closest American to Adelson in terms of growth in net worth this year was Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, who checked in at $26 billion, up $13 billion.

Adelson will launch the Coalition to Stop Internet Gambling in 2014 and seek to rewrite the Wire Act of 1961 to outlaw all forms of online gaming. The Coalition will reportedly include former Denver mayor Wellington Webb (D), former U.S. Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), and former New York Governor George Pataki (R).

Earlier this month, Las Vegas Sands Corporation Vice President of Government Relations and Community Development Andrew Abboud testified in front of a House Subcommittee against the legalization of online gambling in the US, at one point pulling out his cell phone to show how widespread gambling could be.

In the process, Abboud (pictured) said, “Internet gambling takes gambling too far. We would like Congress to restore the Wire Act and shut down illegal online gambling sites. It can be done. It needs to be done… They want to turn every [cell phone]into a casino with unlimited access. Simply because we can doesn’t mean we should.” Following Abboud’s comments, Ranking Member Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) called them “a bit hypocritical” since the Venetian in Las Vegas encourages and promotes mobile sports betting.

Sands properties include The Venetian (Las Vegas), The Palazzo (Las Vegas), Sands Macau (Macau), The Venetian Macau (Cotai Strip), Four Seasons Macau (Cotai Strip), Sands Cotai Central (Cotai Strip), Sands Bethlehem (Pennsylvania), and Marina Bay Sands (Singapore).

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