By Kevin Godbee
If U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.), and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) get their way, Cigar Smokers will soon be in the cross-hairs of the FDA to have their favorite smokes possibly regulated out of business. The Senators, in their grandiose nannyism of saving us grown adults from ourselves, since they know what’s good for us, and choose to ignore the "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" part of the United States Declaration of Independence are urging the FDA to "move swiftly" to take over regulatory control of cigars.

In a letter dated October 14, 2011, to U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Margaret Hamburg, requesting that the agency "move swiftly to issue a strong regulation that would legally treat or deem all tobacco products, including cigars, pipe tobacco, and hookah tobacco and accessories, as subject to the Tobacco Control Act."

Read the rest of this entry →

By C. R. S. Lyles
Consumer rights advocacy has been taking on a new role these past few years.

With the economy in shambles, foreign markets scooping up the debris of American companies and the general woe and misery that has seemed to pervade the public consciousness since mid- to late-2008, it is no small comfort to see the words "cigar rights" used in a context that isn’t accompanied by a scoff.

Cigar Rights of America, led by Executive Director Glynn Loope, is at the forefront of this evolution in consumer rights — H.R. 1639 and Senate Bill 1461, their weapons of choice.

"This is the first time in the political history of the cigar industry that the cigar enthusiasts of the country, the cigar retail community, and the manufacturing community are going on offense," said Loope. "For the first time, we’re not just trying to kill legislation — legislation is being initiated to help defend the cigar business against FDA regulations."

Read the rest of this entry →

Columbus, Georgia – Forty disparate organizations ranging from the American Cancer Society to the United Methodist Church either inadvertently or deliberately misstated the facts in a letter to Congress with respect to H.R. 1639, according to the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association.
Read the rest of this entry →