WASHINGTON — A little-known group of Black law enforcement officers is getting significant access to the White House to talk about the FDA’s proposal to ban menthol cigarettes — and it’s bringing the tobacco industry along.
Twenty-four Biden officials, including Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Robert Califf, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, and White House Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden joined a call earlier this month with the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives to discuss the ban. The meeting was the second time in under a week that NOBLE, whose public programs focus primarily on youth outreach, met with White House officials on the policy, according to public schedules.
NOBLE, which counts the cigarette company Altria as one of its sponsors, didn’t come to the Nov. 20 meeting with Califf and Becerra alone. It brought a prominent lobbyist for Altria, former Democratic lawmaker G.K. Butterfield. Several advocacy groups with ties to Reynolds American, which makes Newport cigarettes, were in attendance too.
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