Trump Caves To Lobbyists, Reverses Stance On Banning Flavored E-Cigarettes

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 17: Andy Ramkumar, who works at Gotham Vape in Queens, vapes at the store on September 17, 2019 in New York City. Gotham Vape features a lounge area to vape as long as selling hundreds of different vaping products. Vaping, which many Americans have taken up as an alternative to smoking, has come under increased federal scrutiny following a rash of deaths related to vaping cannabis. Lawmakers in New York are currently considering a ban on flavored vaping products which make up a significant part of the vape industry. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

Back in September, with pressure mounting from health officials, President Trump said he was moving to ban most flavored e-cigarettes. Vaping had become a national health crisis among young people. But then the political pressure began. Fast forward 60 days and Trump has reversed course. From the New York Times:

But two months later, under pressure from his political advisers and lobbyists to factor in the potential pushback from his supporters, Mr. Trump has resisted moving forward with any action on vaping, while saying he still wants to study the issue.

Even a watered-down ban on flavored e-cigarettes that exempted menthol, which was widely expected, appears to have been set aside, for now.

It’s been a swift turnaround. The Washington Post reports the ban was set to be implemented. All that as needed was Trump’s signature.

But on Nov. 4, the night before a planned morning news conference, the president balked. Briefed on a flight to a Lexington, Ky., campaign rally, he refused to sign the one-page “decision memo,” saying he didn’t want to move forward with a ban he had once backed, primarily at his wife’s and daughter’s urging, because he feared it would lead to job losses, said a Trump adviser who spoke on the condition of anonymity to reveal internal deliberations.

But perhaps the job loss he most feared was his own.

The Post writes, “this time on a plan to address a major public health problem because of worries that apoplectic vape shop owners and their customers might hurt his reelection prospects, said White House and campaign officials. He also believed job losses tied to the ban would cost him as he sought to trumpet economic growth.

Trump had also seen polling that predicted a ban could hurt him in battleground states.

Subtext of our vaping story – public policy debates in WH have become almost entirely about what polls best for POTUS + proxy battles between factions of advisers. https://t.co/SCr0M8iEzd
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) November 18, 2019

The Daily 202 from the Washington Post writes: “The president changed his mind after he was warned repeatedly that banning flavored e-cigarettes would anger vaping enthusiasts and could depress turnout for him in the 2020 election. Trump’s reelection campaign manager Brad Parscale told the president that moving against flavored e-cigarettes could backfire with his base.“