"Make Poker Great Again" Catchphrase Gains Momentum

(Photo: Runitup.com)

Donald Trump will soon be sworn in as the the 45th president of the United States, riding his campaign slogan of "Make America Great Again" all the way to the White House.

Whether you're excited about his prospects of being a great leader due to his obvious success as a businessman, or are fearful that his temperament and other shortcomings make him unfit to hold the highest office in the land, he will lead the country for the next four years.

Several members of the poker community have unabashedly borrowed from Trump's slogan, changing the word "America" to "Poker." The idea is to promote regulation in the U.S. that will allow Americans to log on and play online poker without fear of losing their funds.

(Photo: Runitup.com)

Enter Jason Somerville

The "Make Poker Great Again" campaign apparently began as early as the summer of 2015 when players started posting tweets while inserting a hashtag in front of the slogan. Jason Somerville grabbed the idea and ran with it a few months later, posting a photo of himself as a Trump clone, complete with hair style and business suit that mimics The Donald.

Building a wall and poker players are paying for it #makepokergreatagainpic.twitter.com/wxOWH20s1S

— Brandon Meyers (@oncommand) December 8, 2016

Somerville didn't stop there, continuing to speak up for online poker regulation in the U.S., promoting such legislation in various appearances and interviews. He has since become one of the greatest advocates for the cause, going so far as to create and sell "Make Poker Great Again" t-shirts at his Run It Up website.

The t-shirts sell for $25, with $5 from each garment sold going to the Poker Players Alliance. Somerville has vowed to "personally match every donation" from the sale of the t-shirts in the fight to Make Poker Great Again.

(Photo: Runitup.com)

Poker Friend or Foe?

Still undetermined is whether or not the Trump administration will be an ally or a foe in that fight. Trump's choice of Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions as his U.S. Attorney General has many fearing that the 2011 DOJ decision that allowed individual states to legalize online poker and gambling at their behest will be overturned. Should Sessions be appointed, he has promised to "revisit" the ruling, clearly bad news for regulated U.S. online poker.

In any event, we can expect the "Make Poker Great Again" catchphrase to get a lot of play over the next four years, right alongside Trump's "Make America Great Again." That is, of course, unless the new administration stops the fight dead in its tracks.