Rep. Walter B. Jones (R-NC), whose district produces more flue-cured tobacco than any other in the nation, made the following statement after voting against the provision:

 “President Clinton may have just confirmed his own legacy. In six months, he can leave office confident in the fact that he wasted no opportunity to demolish the tobacco industry and destroy the lives of our nation’s tobacco farmers and their families.

 “Our nation’s farmers have been suffering the effects of bad weather and low prices – especially our farmers who were devastated by Hurricane Floyd.  For many, a tobacco lawsuit would be the breaking point for those who are struggling to hang on.

“I refuse to sit back and watch President Clinton and his anti-tobacco allies in the House threaten the livelihood of our Eastern North Carolina tobacco farmers.  I will join with my North Carolina colleagues and continue to fight President Clinton’s war on our tobacco farm families.”