Trump pleases e-cigarette users by firing anti-vaping Surgeon General Vivek Murthy

San Diego Union-Tribune

April 23, 2017 11:23 AM PT

Supporters of electronic cigarettes have placed great hope that President Donald Trump will ease up on the anti-vaping policies of the Obama Administration. (See my interview with American Vaping Association President Gregory Conley earlier this month for details).

This weekend, vaping supporters are celebrating one step in that direction, with Trump’s firing of vaping foe Vivek Murthy, Obama’s controversial Surgeon General.

Twitter buzzed with praise from vaping advocates.

“Why was Surgeon General @vivek_murthy fired? Anti e-cigarette rhetoric did him in!” wrote A. J. Brave.

“Anti-Vaping Surgeon General @vivek_murthy Has Been Abruptly Replaced. Hooray!” wrote Tara A.

“Hey Sylvia -Little word of advice as you take over the position of @Surgeon_General #vaping *ENDS* the #con,” wrote DrMA. That was a reference’s to Rear Admiral Sylvia Trent-Adams, the acting Surgeon General.

“Perhaps @realDonaldTrump is indeed reading our tweets,” wrote Jeff Stier.

He linked to a short story that said, “There was no official word, but Murthy, who released a report last year on the dangers of addiction, had made enemies because of his opposition to e-cigarettes.”

The Obama administration has long targeted e-cigarettes for restrictions, most notably with a Food and Drug Administration plan to require all vaping products on the market after 2007 to undergo a complicated and expensive approval process. Vaping advocates say this would put many smaller e-cigarette makers out of business, leaving the industry under the control of Big Tobacco.

In December 2016, Murthy released a report calling for prohibition policies against e-cigarettes similar to those used against tobacco-containing cigarettes. It reinforced critics of e-cigarettes, who say the devices provide a gateway to smoking and carry their own risks.

On the other hand, the libertarian magazine Reason launched a blistering attack on the report as “propaganda masquerading as science,” including Murthy’s inaccurate description of e-cigarettes as tobacco products. E-cigarette products don’t contain any tobacco.

Risks and benefits

Gauging the actual risks of e-cigarettes is difficult, because they haven’t been around very long. However, there appears to be a consensus that vaping is less dangerous than smoking. How much less dangerous is a matter of strong contention.

And vaping opponents say smokers may simply adopt vaping while not quitting — adding yet another hazard to the hazard of smoking. Total abstinence from tobacco is necessary to get the benefits of harm reduction, the critics say. Vaping advocates say any reduction in tobacco smoking reduces harm.

Murthy’s vaping report was presumably in the works before Republican Trump’s stunning victory over Democrat Hillary Clinton. Republican activist Grover Norquist has said disgruntled vapers played a key role in Trump’s victory.

Vaping advocates point to the United Kingdom as a better example of public health, where authorities have accepted e-cigarettes as a useful tool in reducing harm. They point to a report from the Royal College of Physicians that found harm reduction “has huge potential to prevent death and disability from tobacco use, and to hasten our progress to a tobacco-free society.”

Gun control and gun rights

Gun rights supporters were also pleased, as Murthy advocates gun control.

“President Trump Just Fired Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy. The NRA And Gun Owners Thank Him,” wrote Armed And Feminine.

“A pro gun rights surgeon general would be great. Nothing wrong with that,” wrote James Michael.

Gun control supporters praised Murthy.

“Thank you @vivek_murthy for your work addressing gun violence as a public health issue...” wrote Lexi Kriss.

“Thank you for supporting gun sense, Dr. Murthy. Please continue speaking out. America needs your voice!,” wrote LitaBarclay.

On to the FDA

An even more important event looms, the confirmation vote on Scott Gottlieb, Trump’s choice to lead the FDA. Vapers see Gottlieb as friendly to the industry.

Skeptics say Gottlieb might be too friendly, as he served on the board of Kure, an e-cigarette retailer. Gottlieb left the board in May of last year after 14 months, but critics say he still has a conflict of interest.

“How to regulate e-cigarettes is one of the most critical questions on tobacco regulation that the FDA is going to be facing in the coming years,’’ said Vince Willmore, a spokesman for Washington-based Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, in a Bloomberg Politics article.

“Gottlieb promised in his filing, approved by the Office of Government Ethics, that in addition to selling his shares he would recuse himself from any matters concerning Kure for one year from the time he resigned from the board -- a period that expires next month,” the Bloomberg Politics article stated.

“Willmore said he should go further and abstain from any decision-making involving vaping rules for at least one year from the time he sells his stake in Kure.

What do you think of President Trump’s decision to fire Surgeon General Vivek Murthy?

Please feel free to voice your opinions in the comments section of this article.

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