A poker tournament will be held in the middle of the Democratic National Convention, it has been announced.

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA), a Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group looking to legalize online poker, announced that it will hold a charity poker tournament called “Poker at the Ballpark” on Tuesday, August 26, 2008, beginning at 10 p.m., in Denver, Colorado, USA, to raise funds for paralyzed U.S. veterans.

The tournament, to be held at Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball’s Colorado Rockies, will occur the same night as Night No. 2 of the four-night Democratic National Convention, also being held in Denver, at the nearby Pepsi Center.

The winner of the tourney will get a seat in next year’s World Series of Poker in Las Vegas, a $10,000 value, the PPA said.

Actor and wannabe poker pro Ben Affleck will participate in the charity tourney, as will poker pros Barry Greenstein and Andy Bloch, the PPA said.

All funds raised during the tourney will go to the Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), a group aiding U.S. vets paralyzed in combat, the PPA said. =A0 Ex-U.S. Senator Alfonse “Al” D’Amato, now a paid flack for the PPA, said of the event: “PPA is honored to host this charity poker tournament and looks forward to raising a lot of money for these American heroes. This is a great opportunity to harness the popularity of the game of poker in order to raise much needed funds for those who have fought to protect our country and our individual freedoms–paralyzed vets.”

It’s no coincidence the PPA is holding an event at the same time and place as the Democratic National Convention.

It will give PPA shills a chance to schmooze with legislators attending the convention, and get their message out that online gambling is good and that there should be no laws restricting those who want to play online poker.

For more information about the PPA, visit its website at www.pokerplayersalliance.org.

For more information about the PVA, visit its website at www.pva.org.

(E-mail Tom Somach at [email protected]) =A0=A0