[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 80 (Thursday, June 18, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H4727]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          HOUSE SHOULD CONSIDER MEANINGFUL TOBACCO LEGISLATION

  (Ms. DeGETTE asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. DeGETTE. Mr. Speaker, last night Big Tobacco did what it does 
best again when it spent $40 million to kill the comprehensive tobacco 
legislation. Is that what America's children are worth?
  This Saturday, it will be exactly 1 year since the State attorneys 
general proposed their settlement agreement. Since last June, Congress 
has done nothing to stem the willful and destructive forces of the 
tobacco industry.
  By selling out to Big Tobacco, the 105th Congress has sat idly by 
while an astounding 1,095,000 more kids have become addicted to 
tobacco. One-third of those children, over 300,000, will die from 
tobacco. These kids are not faceless figures, they are our children.
  Mr. Speaker, we cannot be fooled into believing this problem is too 
complex for the House to address. We can address it. We must address it 
this year.
  One simple solution is to raise the legal purchase age for smoking 
from 18 to 21. Raising the legal age will squash big tobacco's ransom 
demands by paving the way for new restrictions on tobacco solicitations 
on college campuses.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge the House to consider meaningful tobacco 
legislation.

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