On 10 February the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – which in 1995 began an active campaign to exert its authority over the tobacco industry, seeking to implement a wide-ranging package of anti-tobacco measures, including severe restrictions on advertising and marketing – faces a key stage in a legal action brought against it by tobacco companies, supported by the American Advertising Federation and the National Association of Convenience Stores. The plaintiffs will present three arguments to US district judge William Osteen, in Greensboro, North Carolina. The arguments will state:
that Congress has not given the FDA powers to regulate tobacco and that the FDA is therefore acting unconstitutionally and illegally
that the FDA has the authority to regulate drugs and medical devices, and that cigarettes do not fall within its remit
that the advertising restrictions violate the First Amendment, and that there are other, more suitable and effective means of reducing smoking by young people than by restricting freedom of speech.
Meanwhile, in his state of the union address to the American nation on 4 February, President Bill Clinton confirmed that he would seek a full ban on the advertising and marketing of tobacco products.
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