Industry Accountable for Its Deadly Products and Deceptive Actions

This explains why so few states are running effective tobacco control programs, why so few states are allocating their MSA money to anti-tobacco programs, and why Congress (aiming to protect the states they represent) crafted tobacco legislation that does very little to actually make a dent in cigarette consumption

The bottom line is that the tobacco companies have the states coming and going. The MSA scheme was brilliantly concocted by the companies: no matter what the states do, their financial well-being is inextricably tied to that of the major cigarette companies. The partnership between the two is strong and irrevocable, and the risk of states taking any major action to threaten tobacco profits is nil.

This is the ultimate reason why I think that the MSA was such a disaster from a public health perspective. Contrary to what the Attorneys General have boasted, the MSA was about money, not public health. It is a public health disaster by virtue of it providing the states with 100% security - security against the states having any incentive to enact tobacco policies that would threaten their profits.

The MSA is a huge security contract for the tobacco companies. By paying off the politically and economically greedy Attorneys General, the major tobacco companies have succeeded in achieving not only protection of their profits from competition from smaller manufacturers, but also strong partners in protecting their profits from any other threats - including litigation (a.k.a. the Price and Engle bond payments) and substantially declining cigarette consumption.

The major cigarette companies deserve this protection - they earned it by outsmarting the Attorneys General and enticing them by dangling $206 billion in front of them. They are effectively protecting the best interests of their shareholders.

But the American people deserve far better from their elected officials. The Attorneys General are not protecting the best interests of their citizens; far from it - they have sacrificed the public's interest for political and financial gain.

In direct contrast to what the Attorneys General predicted, the Marlboro Man isn't riding into the sunset on Joe Camel. Instead, they're both having a beer and a good laugh together as they enjoy their trip to the bank. And that trip to the bank is possible due to the efforts of former Attorney General Heitkamp.