Frank Riggs: “I was born and raised in Louisville, KY, and I have never used these a day of my life. Yet, as I listen to this debate…”

“I was born and raised in Louisville, KY, and I have never used these a day of my life. Yet, as I listen to this debate, I realize that there is a tremendous contradiction, a dissonance that surrounds this debate, because right on the side of this packet of cigarette it says: ``The Surgeon General's warning: Quitting smoking now greatly reduces serious risks to your health.'' So the Government already warns citizens of the harmful effects of tobacco, yet the Government, or more accurately the taxpayers, partially subsidize the production of tobacco. The Government gives a tacit acceptance to the production of this crop even though on the other hand it warns against its use. Now, colleagues, we should be consistent here. This is not a discriminatory or hypocritical or mean-spirited amendment. This is about right and wrong. Mr. Chairman, the other thing that I want to add to this debate, we have heard speaker after speaker come down to this well, on both sides of the aisle, and remind us of what we already know, which is that smoking is the leading cause of avoidable premature death in this country today.”