Tommy Thompson and Tobacco: Summary

• Using his veto power, Thompson killed efforts to allow local municipalities to adopt tougher laws than the state to protect kids from the free distribution of tobacco.


• Using his veto power, Thompson prohibited local municipalities from conducting compliance checks and issuing citations to stores that sell tobacco to minors.


• A recent St. Louis University study ranked Wisconsin 49^th in a state-by-state comparison of 1996 laws to limit youth access to cigarettes.

• Thompson proposed spending only $5 million of Wisconsin’s $170 million-a-year share on smoking prevention.


• Using his veto power, Thompson cut $2.492 million from what the legislature approved for the tobacco settlement’s smoking prevention efforts.


• Using his veto power, Thompson placed the appointment of the state’s new tobacco use prevention board under his control. He has since appointed the head of the Wisconsin Grocers Association to the board. This is the same person who has fought to keep local communities from doing more to reduce kids’ access to tobacco.


• Using his veto power, Thompson deleted the requirement that Wisconsin follow the CDC’s best practices when using their tobacco settlement money for prevention.

• Using his veto power, Thompson removed language that would have made the seating at the new Milwaukee Brewers baseball stadium smoke-free because it may affect naming rights. After his decision to kill the smoke-free seating, Philip Morris won the naming rights (now called Miller Park after Philip Morris’ Miller Beer).

• Tommy Thompson has taken three trips (London 1992, Africa 1995, and Australia 1996) with Philip Morris front groups posing as non-profits (Libertad, America-European Community Association (AECA), and New York Society for International Affairs).


• Andrew Whist and other Philip Morris executives deny that the front groups (Libertad, AECA and the New York Society) are controlled by PM. However:


• Each front group is controlled by Andrew Whist, senior vice president of Philip Morris. Andrew Whist has been active in Philip Morris tobacco legislative and political efforts domestically and internationally.


• Internal Philip Morris documents detail Philip Morris’ control of these groups, including a memo from Whist to PM’s board announcing the creation of the front groups and their purpose of gaining access to political leaders.


• After originally telling the Wall Street Journal the New York Society for International Affairs was headquartered on Madison Avenue in New York, Whist changes his story telling the paper the headquarters is a "chair in my apartment."

• Thompson said he thought Philip Morris may have had an "indirect" involvement in the trips and that he was unaware of Philip Morris’ financial support of the trips. However, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel discovered:


• After the trip to Africa, Thompson sent a thank you letter to Andrew Whist at Philip Morris headquarters addressed to AECA (the Philip Morris front group that funded the trip)."I value your loyalty and friendship," Thompson said in the letter to Whist.


• The trip to Australia included scuba diving with Philip Morris’ chief Midwest lobbyist and involved only Thompson and his staff; the then Governor of Minnesota and his staff and four Philip Morris employees, including Andrew Whist (senior vice president at Philip Morris). After the trip to Australia, Thompson wrote then Philip Morris chief Midwest lobbyist Jack Lenzi that he was "Especially grateful you agreed to take the scuba-diving plunge with me."


• Telephone logs reveal Thompson called Whist 12 times at Philip Morris headquarters before and after the trip to Australia between December 1995 and June of 1997.

• After several news stories exposed Philip Morris’ involvement, Thompson said future trips will need disclosure but that "there’s nothing illegal or unethical about what happened."

• Philip Morris raised funds for Thompson


• "Thompson’s receipt of more than $72,000 in campaign donations from Philip Morris executives and the firm’s political action committee from 1993 through mid 2000."

--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Thompson links to Philip Morris may be issue, January 10, 2001

• "In 1993, raised money for: Governor Jim Edgar of Illinois, Mayor David Dinkins of NYC, Governor Tommy Thompson of WI…"

--Philip Morris Public Affairs Budget Presentation, September 9, 1993
Philip Morris Tobacco Document #2044712624/2687

• "As their lawyers were hammering out a multi-billion dollar settlement with the states, Philip Morris executives and their subsidiaries did their best to clog Gov. Tommy G. Thompson’s campaign coffers with cash."

-- While making deal, Philip Morris officials gave to Thompson Cary Spivak and Daniel Bice, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, November 19,1998

• Thompson has served on the legal policy advisory board of the WLF since 1994.

• WLF Legal Backgrounder opposing legislation to educate Americans about the hazards of tobacco, claiming that such government propaganda is tantamount to communism.

  -- http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2023915048/5052

• WLF Legal Opinion Letter claiming that ordinances enacted in New York, Baltimore and Cincinnati to restrict tobacco and/or alcohol advertisements are unconstitutional.
  

  -- http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2046035475/5476

• WLF report opposing state and federal government’s lawsuits against the tobacco industry and arguing that the lawsuits subvert the tort system.

  -- http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2046265011/5042
  -- http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2063746208/6209

• The WLF called California’s tobacco prevention media campaign "Anti-Industry Propoganda" and stated that California’s campaign may be constitutionally suspect.

• 1994 WLF Legal Backgrounder claiming there is no need for additional federal tobacco regulations, and that public health advocates are neoprohibitionists.
  

  -- http://www.pmdocs.com/getallimg.asp?DOCID=2046942410/2413

• "Washington Legal Foundation (WLF) — A close ally of PM for many years. WLF has been involved in numerous aspects of the tobacco industry debate. They have filed amicus briefs against the EPA…they authored a major paper detailing why the tobacco industry is already one of the most highly regulated industries in America and does not need any further regulatory control."

Return To: Thompson and Tobacco Page

This fact sheet presented by:

SmokeFree Pennsylvania
n P.O. Box 81570 n Pittsburgh, PA 15217 n 412-421-0500 n FAX 351-5881n Bill Godshall Executive Director n bill@smokescreen.org

Wisconsin Initiative on Smoking and Health (WISH)
n 2900 W. Rangeline Court n Mequon, WI 53092 n 262-512-0672 n FAX 512-0673n Bonnie Sumner President n bonch1545@aol.com

Tobacco BBS
n P.O. Box 359 n New York, NY 10014 n 212-982-4645 n Gene Borio ngeneb@tobacco.org