Both the standardbred and thoroughbred racing industries have been closely watching reports from New Jersey news publications regarding the politics which are currently holding the NJ racing in the balance

. It may not be an official media report, but a Twitter tweet by a respected journalist has raised an eyebrow or two heading into the new legislative session.

On Wednesday, January 4, John Brennan of The Bergen Record reported that Senator Ray Lesniak's online gaming expansion bill would be delayed from a scheduled committee reading today (Thursday, January 5), but that he expected the bill to be approved "soon."

Brennan's report on The Bergen Record contains transcripts from New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and a statement from Senator Lesniak in regard to the bill. Gov. Christie reitterated his position that he would like the bill to be air-tight and have an Atlantic City-centric focus on the online expansion. Sen. Lesniak stated that he will be re-introducing his bill and that he expects it to be signed by the Gov. Christie early in the new session. To read Brennan's article on The Bergen Record, click here.

A few hours after Brennan's article was uploaded, he submitted a tweet to his Twitter feed indicating that a provision from Sen. Lesniak's bill regarding a monetary stream to the NJ horse racing industry may be sacrificed if asked for by Gov. Christie. Brennan's tweet read: "One more on NJ online poker: Sen. Lesniak willing to drop $$ for horse racing line in bill if GovChristie insists (and he will)."

(With files from The Bergen Record)