What do you think of Biden administration changing its mind about menthol cigarette ban in an election year?

[AviatorTom]

The Biden administration has a plan to ban menthol cigarettes in an effort to fight cancer, but has now delayed it. The Wall Street Journal reports that it made the move after considering whether the public health benefits were worth potentially upsetting Black voters in an election year; Blacks tend to vote for Democrats. More than a third of cigarettes sold in the US annually are menthols, and, as of 2020, 81% of Black smokers smoked them while only 30% of white smokers and 51% of Hispanic smokers did, in part because they were aggressively marketed to Black communities for decades, per the WSJ.

What do you think?

Does this qualify as election interference?

[sage2021]

If Biden cares so much about Americans health, banning menthol cigarettes is none of his business. He is a political figure and needs to stay out of the lives of people and what they buy for their preference of cigarettes.

Yep, that's the way to get votes you idiot president. Start telling tax payers what kind of cigarettes they can buy.

Take a look in your own backyard at your son who is a known drug addict. That's what he should be concerned about.

He loves chocolate chip ice cream. Let's ban chocolate chip ice cream and have him start eating black licorice ice cream and see how he likes it. It's the same damn thing. Leave the people's personal choices to them. It's called freedom.

[purplepoppy]

Would black voters really switch in droves to Trump? You've only got to read stuff on here to see what the right thinks of black folk. Don't they prefer to smoke other stuff like weed and crack anyway?

The UK has just brought in with cross party support a new law that anyone born after 2009 will not be able to buy tobacco. Cleverly this gets around upsetting older voters.

[DrPepper12]

Never to Trump. Black churches are still very interested fried behind Dems

[NaultD]

It's not interference but more kissing up to voters, which politicians should do by default.

So the original ban was on flavored nicotine products marketed toward teenagers. Menthol is 100% flavored nicotine. I can also see arguments for how it can be grandfathered in with older cigarette companies because of how long it has been around, compared to, say, watermelon bubble gum vapes.

Basically, is menthol cigarettes closer to classic Flintstones cigarette brands or modern candy-flavored nicotine vapes like those in candy commercials? That is ultimately how I see the argument.

I'm more in favor of a New Zealand-style ban, personally.

[DJB72]

It's short of election interference, more like bribery on a national scale that most people don't realise. A delay isn't a reversal and after November Biden won't give a toss either way. He'll likely sign the ban before January whether he wins or loses.

Frankly if people are dumb enough to smoke with the mountain of evidence of the health issues it's proven to cause and/or exacerbate then they're probably self-identifying as healthy anyway and rationalising the lung, throat, oral, tongue and oesophageal cancers they develop as something they had no control over - like what's in the rainwater...

[DrPepper12]

I wish more USA Americans smoked. Larger pool of retirement dollars for me. Let them pay in and not collect. That COLA will just ⬆️⬆️⬆️

[OlderAndWiser]

Everything the far left does is about solidifying their power and not about what is right for our country.

[DrPepper12]

Uh huh... Tell me more! See if you can assess the far right without whataboutism.

[exitseven]

Biden has been bleeding voters at an increasing rate. He has lost the Hispanic vote and some polls have him at 30% of the male black vote. His tax plan will probably be kept under wraps until after the election. If it ever got out to the public it would finish it for him.

[DrPepper12]

It is public fool. Tax increases on corps and income above $400K

[exitseven]

@DrPepper12 he will be raising corporate taxes and will let the Trump tax cuts expire. Everyone has to pay more if Biden gets elected.

[JacobJordan]

Regardless of what we classify it as reality is if biden is elected for a second term I doubt we will see the US after 4 years. I could be wrong and I hope I am but given the absolute atrocious job he has done as president I doubt it

[DrPepper12]

Define atrocious

[JacobJordan]

@DrPepper12 get a dictionary

[DrPepper12]

I would think it resembles the connotation of "deplorable"

[The_Sexpert]

Obviously he backed out for political needs

But I really don't think a smoker who smokes Menthol cigarettes would stop smoking if they ban menthol..

[DrPepper12]

Correct

[OtterMan68]

It had widespread pushback

full story

[AviatorTom]

That full story is from MSNBC, which is effectively the propaganda wing of the Democratic party, with its extreme liberal slant on news stories.

[OtterMan68]

prove it wrong

[AviatorTom]

We shouldn't have to prove media reports right or wrong. Proper journalism and reporting should be trustworthy. Unfortunately, proper journalism died with Edward R Murrow and Walter Cronkite, years ago.

[OtterMan68]

you accused MSNBC of being slanted. It's on YOU to prove them wrong.
Show me the "proper journalism" that contradicts the MSNBC story.

[Awesomesauce2005]

Why don't we legalize everything. If people die for it it's natural selection.

[DrPepper12]

If it weren't for my God damn liberal empathy I would support that. I AM however for a massive culling of about 5-7 billion people in a Rapture like event. Humans are a parasite on this spinning ball of dirt

[dolemite58]

That sounds like a skit that would’ve been on the chappelle show 🤣

[Meropatrick]

Omg there is a major war going on in Europe and israel and this guy is thinking about menthol?

[DrPepper12]

Blatant pander for black vote.

[gorydetails]

Lmao. Hilarious.