Friday, October 28 2011
By J. Glynn Loope | CRA Executive Director
It was a vigorous week with over twenty Congressional briefings in Washington, DC with the CRA-IPCPR team initiative to advance H.R. 1639 and S. 1461 in an all out effort to keep the United States Food & Drug Administration from regulating cigars.
With a solid team that included: Rocky Patel of Rocky Patel Premium Cigars, Marvin Samel and David Lafferty of Drew Estate, Bobby Newman of J.C. Newman Cigar Co./Fuente-Newman, Daniel McGee of General Cigar Co., Les Mann of Colibri, Craig Cass of Tinderbox of the Carolinas, Greg Zimmerman of The Tobacco Shop of Pennsylvania, Gary Pesh of Old Virginia Tobacco Co., Bill Spann, CEO of IPCPR, Mike Copperman of CRA, Jeff Borysiewicz of Corona Cigar Co., Arthur Zaretsky and Michael Vandenstockt of Famous Smoke Shop (at far left and far right of photo, respectively), and John Anderson of Draper's Tobacconists, they each pounded the pavement to take one simple message to each office – “Leave My Cigars Alone!”
New Co-Sponsors – 98 Have Said Yes to Liberty!It was an outstanding week for new co-sponsors to H.R. 1639. We welcome Representatives: Steve Israel of New York, John Sullivan of Oklahoma, Mick Mulvaney of South Carolina, Timothy Bishop of New York, David Roe of Tennessee, and Glenn Thompson, Tim Holden, and Lou Barletta of Pennsylvania. There are more to come. If your member of Congress is not signed on, call their office and ask!
Way to go Alaska!
Alaska now joins New Hampshire and Kansas as having 100% of its delegation in the US House of Representatives as co-sponsors on H.R. 1639!
Your Voice Being Heard!
“Operation Cigar Liberty” that CRA launched a few months ago has resulted in tens of thousands of emails and calls to members of the US House of Representatives and US Senate.
Please keep the pressure on, as Cigar Rights of America will be back in Washington, DC in each of the coming weeks with members of the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association, in our collective effort to ward off the heavy hand of the federal government from your home and shop humidor.
Believe us. They want nothing more than to be in both...or for it to be empty.
* * *
