On Wednesday, October 3 President Bush vetoed H.R. 976, legislation enacted by Congress to fund a $35 billion expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The legislation will return to the House, which will vote first to override the veto. House leaders have scheduled that vote for October 17 in order to allow them more time to milk the issue politically while continuing to put intense pressure on fellow Congressmen to join them in overriding the veto.
This legislation carries an especially punitive tax on handmade cigars - a tax that will unequivocally cause the cigar industry to atrophy. Don't misunderstand, this isn't about just paying a little more for cigars and showing a little compassion. With the stroke of a pen, if the House successfully overrides the veto, this legislation will wipe out many retailers and distributors, put in jeopardy thousands of American jobs and literally hundreds of thousands more in Central America. This legislation is the opposite of compassion, and punitive taxation without representation like this is tyrannical. This federal cigar tax is the single biggest threat the tiny cigar industry has ever faced and time is of the essence. Cigar enthusiasts of all political stripes - and clear-thinking people everywhere - need to band together right now to sustain the President's veto.
Pressure your House Representative to sustain the veto - the House vote is expected to be extremely tight and the threat of overriding the President's veto is very real.
Click here to take action - urge your Congressmen to sustain the veto by VOTING NO to a veto override.. The very survival of the handmade cigar industry, most importantly jobs, are at stake.