- Supporters & Opponents
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- $ Near Votes
- Timeline of Contributions
- Committees
- History & Status
- In the News
| Title | Source | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Senate Votes to Impose U.S. Regulation on Tobacco | New York Times | June 11, 2009 |
| Plan to Regulate Tobacco Industry Passses U.S. Panel | Bloomberg | March 4, 2009 |
| House Commitee Approves Bill to Give FDA Tobacco Authority | MedPage Today | March 4, 2009 |
| House Bill Expected on FDA Control of Tobacco | New York Times | February 27, 2009 |
Contribution data provided by the Center for Responsive Politics (OpenSecrets.org)
Comments 
Related Legislation by Alina Fortson, Mar 24, 2009 (6:30pm)
Tobacco Bill: Years to Perfect Approach by Alina Fortson, Mar 30, 2009 (6:42pm)
This legislation has been reintroduced in congress several times. Congress has been aware for years of the negative effects of smoking / tobacco products and has had ample time and opportunity to act in protecting the public. Waxman’s (CA-30) bill, however, feels more like a knee-jerk reaction than a well thought out plan. Allowing the Food and Drug Administration to have authority over tobacco products is not a solution—it only ads to an already overburdened workload at the FDA. Additionally, FDA approved tobacco products could confuse the public—is FDA approved equivalent to safe? Lastly, the partnership with Philip Morris USA and other major tobacco companies is suspicious. In fact, the bill contains a “grandfather clause” that protects existing products from new regulations. HR 1256 has many positive aspects and was written with good intentions—but it still needs work.
Selling American lives for profit again. And we vote for these people? by Mr. Brown, May 14, 2009 (1:32pm)
This bill has been getting shot down as an obvious power grab since 2004. There is nothing in this bill that will “protect” the population from tobacco, in fact by reducing the amount of nicotine they will be forcing those addicted to it to smoke even more tobacco to get the substance their addiction requires.
It focuses on nicotine, which has never been shown to cause cancer and will make it nearly impossible for reduced risk products such as Snus and electronic cigarettes to be sold in the USA. Both Snus and electronic cigarettes have either drastically reduced or no cancer causing carcinogens. In countries where these items have been embraced by the government the tobacco related illnesses have dropped by more than a third. However these products have been blocked from import and are being attacked by people like Waxman without even the slightest scientific rational.
The only logical purpose for this bill is to increase tax and corporate tobacco revenues by forcing smokers to double their intake, and block competition and alternative nicotine containing products from entering the market, even if those products could save millions of lives. Bear in mind that nicotine is an addictive stimulant usually compared to caffeine by medical professionals. To me it makes it more apparent than ever that those voting for this bill value the dollar over American lives.
I won’t even start with the fact that they are trying to push two other completely unrelated policies through under the heading of tobacco control.
do i live in a free country any more? by Anonymous, Sep 1, 2009 (9:17pm)
Have I lost my right to choose as an american what I put in to my body? Will you tell me next I can’t have starbucks? Why can all cigarettes just be sold in cartons or make a register of clove smokers so us adults and those of indo-american culture can enjoy the kreteks of their home land via mail order so we don’t all become criminals and import cloves illegally after the 1st of september. Why not let clove smokers register and mail order their poison or just sell all cigarettes by the carton. This is a violation of constitutional rights. If you ban my cloves then ban obama’s menthols. They are way more attractive to kids since everyone wants to be a rapper. My best friend from indonesia.. You just took a huge part of his culture away and now he will be a criminal who has them shipped from his family. Just today we were honest business men and now we count the days until we are criminal clove importers. Now that obama banned my cloves and I have to order them like a criminal! I wonder if Obama would sign a ban that included his cigarettes now that I am scrambling to get a bunch of djarums shipped before september 1st and find a resource to get them after the ban. These cigarettes are $8 a pack and $70 a carton. Why don’t we sell flavored (or all cigarettes) in cartons? Then only smokers who are dedicated can buy them, children and the poor people who can afford a single packs but not health care will have to quit. I thought I lived in america, a free country. Where as an adult I have the priveledge to make a decision if I want flavored tobacco or flavored liquor. Flavored liquor is way more desirable to teenagers than flavored cigarettes. Flavored cigarettes are not affordable but any kid can get flavored liquor for a few dollars. We already have a law that prevnts minors from smoking, it is really the obligation of the parent. Not the government. Surely we wouldn’t ban menthol or whatever brand Obama smokes anytime soon. These cigarettes I have been legally smoking since college are now illegal. I may as well smoke pot, they’ll legalize that and tax it but won’t let me enjoy a clove with my coffee. These guys get $210 a month from me for a pack of djarums a day and $2500 a year. Kids can’t afford that. Middle class men and women can barely swing that. Especially these day, kids don’t really smoke like they used to. People look at you like you have a disease when you smoke. Kids and the poor are going to smoke whatever they can afford. Most kids start on the brands there family and friends smoke (marlboro,camel,newports) menthols being especially popular with kids durinf the rise of hip-hop/pop culture. They are easier to smoke. A lot of people won’t even smoke cloves because they are harsh and heavy. I gave my cousin who has been smoking reds for 30 years a clove yesterday and he almost choked to death. Way too much for the average smoker. These clove cigarettes are more cigarish and elitest with their high prices and taxes. Which is weird why in a recession that we take items off the shelf that provide such high tax revenues. Cloves and even other flavored cigarettes are smoked by the college type, the intellectual, coffee shop goers, musicians, goths, eccerntrics and other berkely types. These enjoyable smokes help me relax, review and reassess while I enjoy a cup of coffee. My friend likes them once or twice a month when drinking. My friend from indonesia smokes them daily like I do except the difference between me and him is you are depriving this man of his cultural right when america is suppose to embrace the ideas of different ethnic groups. We let the jewish go to temple, we let the middle eastern folk go to mosque and put curry on everything, the russian’s get their vodka and the asians get their rice, rotten eggs and dog. My friend can’t ever again smell the clove scent of his country, he and I went from being successful businessmen to having to become illegal clove importers just to enjoy our lifestyles. Just for my friend to enjoy is culture and feel at home with how he was raised. Almost all clove cigarettes
come from indonesia and so it really disrupts their market regardless of what the upper brass thinks. This is protectionism. This is a violation of my amendments and rights. This law gives the fda way too much control and makes us a big brother country where the government raises the children since we allow the parents to be incompetent. I am an american who has been stripped of constitutional rights. I will do what I want, this will not stop me from getting my cloves nor will the lack of the 1% of cloves in the market will not curb kids from smoking. Most kids don’t smoke these days. It’s not cool to smoke you get treated like a leper. Like I said, sell cigarettes by the carton only and tax them to death. The real smokers will buy them. The drinking smokers will bum them and the kids and very low income will not be able to afford them. I mean what’s next? Take away my flavored mouthwash? What about super sweet apricot beer that kids love. Kids die from alcohol, not cigarettes, more kids die from fraternity activities. Kids who smoke generally have family that smoke. No one wakes up and says I think it will be cool to pay for bad breath and cancer just to hold this cool stick. Leave us free adults alone. Regulate the parents and do not let the administration and the fda turn america in to a dictatorship and make us 1% of smokers live a harder life of luxury. To much control. Iv’e always leaned more democrat but honestly these liberals need to leave me alone with their whole foods infested berkelyish veagan ideas that say I can’t eat meat or ill die, or transfast because ill die or oxygen because ill die. Don’t worry we will all die soon enough and if you don’t let smokers and drinkers kill themselves then you have population control to deal with. Well let’s just let the fda put mercury in our dental fillings, and hormones in our babys milk and not let us smoke the brand of cigarettes we enjoy. Protectionsim, loss of rights. Damn is the apocolypse comming? I hope indonesia sticks their foot sideways up the behind of the WTO and fight for my rights as an american before I have to move to a country that is a little less motherly. This is how I feel and most people agree. The new ban is stupid.-david
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