Former U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to save flavoured vapes if re-elected.
“I saved flavored [sic] vaping in 2019, and it greatly helped people get off smoking,” he wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform.
“I raised the age to 21, keeping it away from the ‘kids.’ Kamala [Harris] and Joe [Biden] want everything banned, killing small businesses all over the country. I’ll save vaping again.”
In his first term as president, Trump promised to crack down on sales of flavoured products. He later backtracked, saying vaping could help people stop smoking.
Trump’s watered-down proposals banned the sale of all sweet and fruity flavoured vape pods and cartridges but allowed gas stations and convenience stores to continue selling menthol cartridges and vapes.
They also allowed vape shops to sell a broad range of e-liquids for open-tank vaping systems.
Free market advocates and small business vape shop owners and vape makers supported the proposals while anti-tobacco advocates accused Trump of caving to pressure from the nicotine business.
Vaping industry backs Trump’s latest comments
The vaping industry has now welcomed Trump’s latest comments.
Tony Abboud, Executive Director of the Vapor Technology Association (VTA), said: “Today, VTA had the opportunity to meet with President Donald J. Trump.
“We had a wide-ranging conversation, and we thanked President Trump for taking two bold and decisive actions in 2019: Saving flavoured vapes for adults and protecting youth by raising the age to 21.”
“Since then, youth vaping has dropped to an all-time low, and many adults have used flavoured vaping to quit smoking. VTA’s meeting with President Trump represents a great day for small businesses across America who fear the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to shut down small businesses and deprive adults who smoke of their flavoured vaping products. We are pleased that former President Trump is continuing to fight for vapers.”
