hiGUYYS

So let me get this straight. Your claim is narrow and not very explosive: that the bill is not intended by Altria to keep nicotine away from kids. Your evidence for this claim 1. The bill does not contain even stronger prohibitions on the sale of flavors. 2. The sponsors of the bill are from tobacco states (Mitch McConnell from Kentucky) 3. Altria (makes of Marlboro/investor in JUUL) lobbies the sponsors of the bills 4. In the past cigarette companies have targeted kids and continue to do so 5. Activists think Altria is still going to target kids

So basically you went online and looked at who donated to Mitch McConnell. Saw it was Altria and took a screenshot. Then did a bit of background research on the history of Phillip Morris advertising to kids, then shot some emails to anti-tobacco advocates to get quotes from them being mean to cigarette companies. And then come on here for an AMA.

What exactly is it that you are adding to the conversation? Where exactly do you see a problem, or something worth actually “investigating”?

Thank you for your thorough and well-thought our response even though some guy on the internet (me) was being a bit of a dick.

I was wrong to imply you hadn’t added any hard evidence to the conversation.

But given the facts already publicly accessible (I.e the cigarette companies want this, or at least Altria does) wouldn’t we assume they were acting in their best interest. And shouldn’t we then naturally assume that this bill is an attempt by cigarette companies to avoid harsher penalties down the road?

That conclusion comes naturally based on facts already available and I was unsure what your research added. But I will admit that I did not know the specifics of “project sunrise” and found that very interesting.

I will adds that Scott gottlieb At FDA has been masterful in using his authority from the Tobacco Control Act to threaten the marketing access of all products containing nicotine. I think that these legislative efforts are simply an effort by Altria, with its large stake in JUUL to avoid bans on flavored liquid etc, which Gottlieb has said will happen if youth use rates of e-cigarettes do not decrease quickly.

The FDA currently has the power to lower the amount of nicotine allowed in marketable cigarette products to basically Zero. There is no need for additional legislative authority. The FDA is turning the screws on JUUL and ecig companies to make them lobby for modest change by threatening them with restricted marketing authority. This is the product of that effort. It’s not going to be perfect, but it’s a huge step forward.

I agree with your larger point that this information needs to be reported, but this guy is claiming to be an “investigative journalist.” That means he is claiming to have dug deeper, beyond just doing google searches of publicly available information. When I first read the article I was u sure what he had “investigated” to add to the conversation.

For example, I didn’t see that he had access to new documents or sources. So I guess I questioned why this guy from a local news station thought he was qualified to think he could speak to this topic on an AMA.

Very interesting, again thanks!!