Veto the Watered-Down Smoking Bill: It Stinks!

From the first I heard of a "deal" between Virginia House Speaker Bill Howell and Governor Kaine on banning smoking in bars and restaurants, I was extremely leery. My thinking was along the lines of, "what kind of weak, lame smoking bill could this possibly be if Bill Freakin' Howell agreed to it and if Flat Earth House Republicans could vote for it?" Soon enough, as I thought would happen, anti-smoking groups lined up against the bill:

Thursday's announcement does not guarantee that the legislation will win approval in Richmond. Anti-smoking and health advocates argued that the proposed ban does not go far enough. The American Heart Association, American Cancer Society and American Lung Association vowed Thursday to fight the bill. They say it lacks enforcement -- violating the ban would bring only a $25 fine for businesses.

Peter Fisher, a vice president at the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, called the proposal "a step backward."

"It looks like a bit of a missed opportunity," said Fisher, whose organization is opposing the bill.

All true. But still, one could make the argument that at least this was "something," that it was significant simply that Virginia, where tobacco has been king since time immemorial, would enact ANY kind of smoking restrictions. I could understand that reasoning, but my suspicions and skepticism remained. How cynical, you might be thinking?

Well, soon enough, my "cynicism" was proven correct, as the House of Delegate proceeded to water down an already pretty weak compromise down to nothing.

Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine said amendments that substantially dilute a compromise bill to sharply curb smoking in Virginia restaurants breached a deal he made with House Republican leaders.

[...]

"We made a deal," Kaine told reporters Tuesday morning. "Folks said we're going to stand up and support a bill that has some very defined provisions in it, and we need to get the bill back to the deal. The advocacy community feels strongly about it and so do I."

Currently, Gov. Kaine is considering what to do about this bill, which is now essentially worthless. I strongly urge him to do veto it, or to send back an amended bill that's serious about protecting restaurant workers and patrons from deadly, second-hand tobacco smoke. And this November, let's ditch the Know Nothing Republicans in the House of Delegates who keep defying the overwhelming will of Virginians - 75% support a state-wide smoking ban - on this issue.