[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 45 (Wednesday, April 22, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H2127]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              UNDERAGE SMOKING SHOULD BE CONGRESS' TARGET

  (Mr. GREEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GREEN. Mr. Speaker, we see the House Republican leadership and 
the tobacco industry are united in their message. They are both 
attacking big taxes, big government, and saying there they go again.
  Tobacco companies have full page ads in newspapers all over the 
country saying, ``We want to attack big taxes and big government.'' 
Well, so do we. But what I want to be concerned about is the children 
that they have admitted to addicting for many years to tobacco.
  In testimony before our Committee on Commerce they agreed they 
marketed their industry to children 12 years old, 13 and 14-year-olds. 
That is why they agreed to a settlement to pay for what they did for 
the last 30 years to have those children addicted who are now my age. 
That is why they agreed to pay $300-plus billion now.
  What we want to do is make sure they do not continue to do that to 
the next generation, to addict more Americans at a young age. It is 
really sad that more children know Joe Camel than know Mickey Mouse. 
That is because of the success of their advertising campaign.
  Mr. Speaker, instead of attacking big government and big taxes, why 
not attack the issue of trying to stop children from smoking?

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