Health Advocates, Tobacco Companies Square Off In General Assembly

The American Lung Association passed out cigarettes to lawmakers with a letter from Jim Goodmon, president of Capitol Broadcasting Co., which owns WRAL.

Goodmon, who supports a cigarette tax hike as a way to stop teenage smoking, wrote to lawmakers that if they do not support the increase, they might as well give the cigarettes to teenagers.

Meanwhile, employees of two North Carolina cigarette makers flooded the legislative building wearing colored shirts calling for defeat of a cigarette tax increase.