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FLORIDA SETTLES TOBACCO LAWSUIT [8.25.1]
Congressional Bailout Premature
A historic victory over the tobacco industry was announced in Florida today. Florida has negotiated the largest monetary settlement ever from the industry, $11.3 billion. It has also obtained agreements on a number of public health measures that would discourage youth smoking.
Equally important, Florida was able to secure the release of secret tobacco industry documents and obtain major concessions on the harmfulness of smoking from executive officers of both Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds.
This victory could not have occurred if Congress had passed the global bailout which provides immunity from lawsuits for the tobacco industry. Therefore, Florida's historic settlement should serve as a big red light to Congress. It needs to stop moving forward prematurely to bail out the tobacco industry with a flawed global settlement.
Congress needs to let these state lawsuits go forward at least until all the secret documents are released and there are clear and unequivocal admissions by all the major tobacco companies that nicotine is addictive and smoking kills. Even then the tobacco industry does not deserve the unprecedented immunity now contained in the global settlement.
The release of some of the secret documents in Florida should also serve as an incentive for Congress to subpoena the relevant secret documents that Minnesota Attorney-General Humphrey has identified as "smoking howitzers."
Both Texas and Minnesota, the next two states to go to trial have obtained a large cache of secret tobacco industry documents that need to be revealed to the public before Congress or the President will be in a solid position to determine what, if any, deal should be cut with the tobacco industry.
Governor Chiles and Attorney-General Butterworth are to be commended for standing up to Big Tobacco. Until Congress has similar courage, it shouldn't be dealing with the industry. As the recent tax offset shows, this Congress is still able to be outsmarted by tobacco's backroom deals. The public health needs to be protected, not sold out to crafty lobbyists and their Congressional friends.