Bill Clinton: “The truth is, the reason cigarettes have not been declared illegal is because most Americans don't believe it should be…”

“The truth is, the reason cigarettes have not been declared illegal is because most Americans don't believe it should be illegal. They know that it's dangerous; the warnings are printed there. But most people believe that it's not as immoral as using drugs or as destructive to the fabric of society. And so there's not much sentiment to make cigarette smoking illegal. It's a deeply embedded part of our culture. On the other hand, for many years, cigarette smoking was declining, thank goodness, among Americans. Now we see some evidence that smoking is increasing among some people, particularly younger women, which I'm very concerned about. So our Surgeon General, Dr. Elders, who's responsible for talking to the American people about their health, has really launched a real aggressive initiative against cigarette smoking and especially against the second thing you talked about, which is targeting ads to young people, which I think is so wrong. I think it is really, really wrong. And we have to speak out against it and try to get people to change their practices. And I will keep doing that. I also favor increased taxes on cigarettes to discourage people from using them. The people in Michigan just voted for a 50-cent-a-pack tax on cigarettes and to give all the money to the schools. And we need to see more initiatives like that. Mr. Jennings. How old are you, Brodie?”