Senate Signals Disapproval Of Liability Cap For Tobacco Industry
Democrats urge Gingrich to move forward with House tobacco bill
WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, May 21) -- In a setback for the contentious tobacco legislation now on the Senate floor, lawmakers signaled Thursday they would like to remove an $8 billion-a-year liability cap for cigarette makers.
In a surprise 61-37 vote, the Senate indicated its disapproval for the provision limiting industry liability. The victory resulted from an unlikely alliance of senators who want a tobacco bill tougher on the industry, and those who want it to die altogether.
Opponents of the cap who say the bill goes too easy on big tobacco argued the industry's history of misleading consumers disqualified it from congressional protections. "This is not an industry which deserves special protection from the United States Congress," argued Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who led the effort to remove the liability limitation.
Senators who supported the limited immunity argued it was a way of getting tobacco companies to agree to elements of the bill, like advertising restrictions aimed at reducing youth smoking, which would otherwise end up in court.
"Without those liability provisions ... the industry will not participate to the fullest extent possible in any tobacco program," said Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), "and they certainly will not participate voluntarily."
"We can't legislate necessarily the advertising restrictions that go into the FDA rule without raising First Amendment questions," Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle said. "That is a problem. The cap is our way of addressing that particular problem."
Sources told The Associated Press that some Republicans, who oppose the entire tobacco package, decided to support the vote against the liability cap, hoping it would damage the the bill's chances for passage.
On the vote, 36 Republicans and 24 Democrats sided with Gregg in opposition to the liability cap. There were 20 Democrats and 17 Republicans on the other side. There were several last-minute switches on the roll call when it became clear the move would prevail.
The vote against the cap was the the first major assault on the White House-backed McCain tobacco bill. "Yesterday [Wednesday] we had two significant victories," Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the bill's chief sponsor, said after the vote. "Today [Thursday] we had a defeat."
McCain and his supporters have been trying to keep the tobacco bill from being derailed by opposing amendments. Despite the day's vote McCain pledged, "We intend to move forward."
The issue of legal liability is now in limbo. Technically, Gregg had been attempting to strip the restriction from the bill. McCain and others tried to table -- effectively kill -- the amendment. They failed, but the Senate did not immediately return to the issue.
So the $8 billion cap remains in the legislation, even though a majority of senators indicated they want it removed.
The tobacco legislation is under attack on another front as well, as conservatives signaled they are not satisfied with their successful effort Wednesday to block an amendment to raise cigarette taxes by $1.50 a pack, but want the $1.10-a-pack price increase mandated by the legislation thrown out, too.
Sen. John Ashcroft (R-Mo.) made it known that he would renew his campaign to eliminate the tax increases in the measure. Ashcroft, who held the Senate floor for three hours Wednesday, drew only 26 votes that day on a similar proposal to eliminate the $1.10 increase from the legislation.
The number of amendments under consideration make it almost certain that the Senate will not have a final vote on the McCain bill before Friday when the Senate recesses for a week-long Memorial Day break. In that case, the debate will continue into June.
Democrats want House action on tobacco
House Democratic leaders have sent a letter urging Speaker Newt Gingrich to schedule "comprehensive" anti-teen smoking legislation for debate on the House floor before the July 4 recess.
At a news conference to discuss the letter, Minority Leader Dick Gephardt (D-Mo.) told reporters there was "no more important step that Congress can take to protect the health of our kids than ending the tobacco industry's unscrupulous, multi-million advertising campaigns to get them hooked."
Gephardt was joined by former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, former FDA Commissioner David Kessler, and Reps. David Bonior (D-Mich.) and Vic Fazio (D-Calif.).
Koop criticized cigarette manufacturers for seeking immunity from prosecution, saying "the tobacco industry has proven itself to be an irresponsible corporate citizen... No other industry has ever had these protections and we should not extend to the tobacco industry, whose products serve only to kill Americans prematurely, any such kinds of protections. "
Koop also expressed his "disappointed" feelings toward the White House, saying,"You will remember that Mr. Clinton said early on that immunity will be no deal breaker as far as the McCain bill is concerned and yet while he was in Europe it became very clear from his staff at the White House that this could be a deal breaker. And you also remember that Mr. Clinton told Dr. Kessler and me that he would never get ahead of us on public health issues and yet while he was in Europe his staff certainly got considerably ahead of us on public health issues."
On the proposed legislation, Gephardt, Bonior, Fazio and two other members of Democratic leadership sent a letter to Gingrich on Thursday, outlining their requirements for acceptable legislation.
They include enforceable teen smoking reduction targets, full FDA authority to regulate tobacco, no special protections for the tobacco industry, a comprehensive approach for related health goals, protection for farmers and tobacco communities, and international tobacco control.
Fazio complained House Republicans have stalled on the anti-smoking issue, saying the House "has done absolutely nothing: not one hearing, not one markup, not one minute of debate on the floor, nada, nothing."
CNN's Candy Crowley and Ann Curley and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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