When it came to matters of public health, Donald Trump’s presidency featured few highlights, though part of the Republican’s record stands out as unusual: his approach to vaping.
In 2019, the year before his re-election bid, Trump announced that his administration would ban flavored vapes, and while he ultimately scaled back his position for political reasons, the then-president ultimately signed a measure to raise the minimum age to purchase e-cigarette and other tobacco products. Soon after, the Republican administration also approved a limited ban on mint and fruit-flavored cartridge-based e-cigarettes.
Evidently, however, Trump’s position is evolving. The Washington Post reported:
Former President Donald Trump offered enthusiastic support for vaping on Friday, promising to protect the industry following a private meeting earlier in the day with a leading vaping lobbyist. Trump wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform, that he “saved Flavored Vaping in 2019” and would “save Vaping again!”
The article noted that the GOP candidate’s online boast represented “a revisionist account of his administration’s approach to vaping, the heating of nicotine to make an inhaled aerosol.”
But of particular interest was the process through which Trump changed his mind. While in office, the Republican briefly endorsed a ban on flavored vaping. As he eyes a return to the White House, the former president now wants to be seen as a vaping champion.
What changed? According to the Post’s reporting, Trump’s new position “is consistent with the recent financial support he has received from the tobacco industry.” It also came “just after a meeting with the head of the Vapor Technology Association, which describes itself as the leading vaping trade association, representing more than 100 members of the industry.”
A few months ago, Politico published a report with a memorable headline: “Trump keeps flip-flopping his policy positions after meeting with rich people.”
The relevance of the headline lingers for a reason.
For example, Trump supported banning TikTok, only to reverse course after chatting with Jeff Yass, a billionaire hedge fund manager — and prospective campaign donor — who has a multibillion-dollar stake in ByteDance, TikTok’s parent corporation. Something similar appears to have happened with the cryptocurrency industry.
Trump also started hedging on some of his immigration policies around the time he met with wealthy corporate executives at a Business Roundtable meeting.
A few months earlier, Trump publicly suggested that conservatives should give up their opposition to Anheuser-Busch shortly before he attended a fundraiser hosted by an Anheuser-Busch lobbyist. Perhaps most importantly, Trump abandoned his long-time skepticism about cryptocurrencies after having some chats with prospective donors at Mar-a-Lago. It’s tempting to see this as corruption, but it’s worth being more specific about what’s happened. Trump isn’t saying, “I’ll change my position in exchange for money,” he’s instead effectively saying, “Since I don’t care about governing or public policy anyway, I’ll just align my beliefs with the preferences of wealthy people and prospective donors who have my ear behind closed doors.” If recent history is any guide, it’s only a matter of time before this list grows. This post updates our related earlier coverage.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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