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Jump to full article: Newport News (VA) Daily Press, 2009-10-31
Author: Hilton Oliver Executive Director, Virginia Group to Alleviate Smoking in Public Virginia Beach
Intro: Virginia voters were outraged that the legislature took four years to enact the widely popular ban on smoking in restaurants. I hope Peninsula residents have a long memory in the case of Del. Tom Gear.
Gear chaired the six-member subcommittee which peremptorily killed this measure for three straight years and kept it from a floor vote. When a compromise finally enabled the legislature to bypass Gear's subcommittee, he continued to oppose it vocally and even blasted House Speaker William Howell for relenting and allowing a fair vote on it.
When legislators openly and arrogantly defy the clear wishes of their constituents, it is time to show them the door. I urge all voters who value health above the interests of Big Tobacco to defeat Del. Gear.
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