The Shuster Project

Tobacco Industry Fraud & False Claims Issues

Click HERE To Read Our Letter Sent to Senator Kerry's Presidential Campaign

(Please Note: This letter is dated 6/5/02)

Dear Meg,
You are wrong...the avoidance practiced by the body of individuals and organizations, legislators and Attorneys General and media outlets is absolutely not making us "crazy" for in an odd way, they stand to, perhaps, lose some face and credibility were they to do the right thing and acknowledge that these are crimes that got away from them...crimes they didn't even know existed for they were buried so deep into the tobacco industry culture it took someone from that culture to reveal them.

But now that they are being revealed and they should be doing not only their parts but their JOBS in addressing these crucial issues and recover the massive amounts of defrauded taxpayer dollars, yet they continue to attempt to keep their heads buried in the sand.

We're convinced that the reason media outlets and leaders of national organizations  (NOW, NAACP for instance) and legislators do not follow up with us, even when they promise to, is because of the perceived complexities of these issues on their part.

For instance, if you read Kwaisi Mfume's response to us, he stated that he would put the resources of the NAACP at our disposal, so we issued a list of things their national leadership could do to render relief to their memberships that own retail stores that sell cigarettes and are at critical financial liability for the misreporting and unintentional underreporting of substandard state sales tax receipts across the country and other issues such as targeted minority exploitation with "price," "cost" and advertising to mention just a few, and all of a sudden we never hear from him again.
Fear on his part of the tobacco companies?
We don't know...ask him.

When State Rep's Del Gobbo and San Angelo tell us that they will do all that they can to help us with HB6942, the CT State sales tax and state income tax fraud issues and then they disappear...what are we to make of it?
Fear, on their part, of the tobacco companies?
We don't know...ask them.

And while you're at it, ask Moira Lyons, House Speaker, for Kevin and  Ron assured me that they were going to bring her into the loop for her help with HB6942 and to order investigations into the fraud issues we told them about and the many other tobacco fraud issues we were supposed to be working with them on after they got started with just the state sales tax fraud and state income tax fraud issues.

Of course we have had not one individual tell us that these are not "real issues."
Quite to the contrary...everyone that we have spoken to on these issues ranging from prominent tobacco issue activists at Northeastern University in Massachusetts to Congressman Henry Waxman (who also disappeared) to the NAACP's Kwaisi Mfume and every single "ordinary" citizen we have spoken to about this is outraged not only that this fraud exists and continues unabated to this day, but outraged at those legislators, national leaders and their own news resources for keeping them in the dark about these issues.

How can they not be "real" when not just the evidentiary documentation and materials and witnesses proves that these issues are not only of state importance, but of national importance when considered that these crimes are occurring across the United States.

The witnessed testimony of the Special Agent from the IRS not only directly disputes the "responses" we've received from their various offices attempting to "minimize" or somehow dispute the actual figures, but clearly reveals that the IRS does not want to be exposed for not addressing these issues over the decades, much, now, like the FBI attempted to downplay Ms Rawley's pre-9/11 reports on her findings.

The exception here is that ordinary citizens brought these mammoth figures of defrauded revenues where their own "seasoned" agent's didn't find it, didn't know about it and are attempting to bury it.

Exactly why we don't know other than that we're pretty sure it has alot to do with not wanting to be seen as somehow being inept and continuously ineffective in the face of significant state and federal tax revenue fraud issues brought forth by ordinary citizens.
Are there other reasons they are distributing false information about our documentation, figures and such?
We don't know...ask them.

As for Dick Blumenthal, he has received not only the same Press Releases and Alerts and George, Ron, Kevin and the many, many others including John Rowland, Bill Clinton and now, George W, but Dick also received several transmissions sent specifically to Attorneys General proposing several times individual and regional meetings to coordinate efforts to address these crimes and to dedicate the recovered defrauded revenues completely to smoker cessation programs, as most states involved in the settlement with tobacco companies are putting less than 5% of the money they are receiving from the tobacco companies into programs that will prevent smoking or other cessation programs.
Perhaps if the Attorneys General did consult with us, meet with us and work with us to address these issues of tobacco industry fraud & false claims it would simply highlight the already dismal record these states have in not utilizing the moneys they are already getting and putting it into the programs it should be going into.
Is that why they continue to remain silent on these issues?
We don't know...ask them.

This will conclude without further discussion our only comments on why the other people that should be doing their jobs to address these issues but are not for whatever their reason(s).

Should you have further questions related directly to the issues contained within The Shuster Project please forward them or, of course, by all means feel free to phone me, OK?
Sincerely,
Robb

(Please Note: It's been three days, now, since my last correspondence to Meghan and we are awaiting substantive actions on the part of George Jepsen with respect to the issues of tobacco industry fraud and false claims and their massive, significantly negative financial impact upon Connecticut, although these issues significantly and negatively impact all of the other states as well.)

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