"My proposal is a win-win for Republicans, for Democrats -- and for all Californians," Assembly Speaker Herb Wesson said. "Either people quit smoking, which is good for everyone, or their habits help us balance our budget."Screw you Herb Wesson! Why don't you go find some pork barrel liberal spending to cut instead of sticking it to the smokers AGAIN.
The new proposal is also expected to result in a proportional increase in taxes on cigars and smokeless tobacco.
And it's not just cigarettes, people. Looks like ALL forms of tobacco, regardless of what type.
Growing your own is looking more attractive every day.
Herb Wesson is an idiot. Smokers won't pay $3.00 a pack for tobacco; they'll head for the Indian reservations or the Internet to stock up. And California will actually lose revenue as a result. Yeah smokers are not a constituency that has any real political friends in either party but contrary to the boasts of the Assembly Speaker, they still have choice about where to find the cartons needed to blow smoke in his and the rest of the clueless liberals' faces.