House Republicans say they 'desperately need a place to smoke cigars'

[El Presidente]

 

Amen 

"There's no better time to build a relationship than over a cigar," Rep. Guy Reschenthaler of Pennsylvania told Axios. "You can actually have a long conversation with somebody, and it really leads to building bridges."

 

 

House Republicans say they 'desperately need a place to smoke cigars'

 

 

Rep. Tom Cole recently moved offices, and it's causing problems for GOP lawmakers who smoke cigars. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

 

House Republicans are facing yet another crisis — but it's only tangentially related to the business of crafting and passing laws.

They need a place to smoke cigars near the House floor.

Until recently, they had one: Rep. Tom Cole, a long-serving Oklahoma Republican known for his own cigar penchant, had provided space for such activities as chairman of the House Rules Committee, which meets on the second floor of the Capitol.

 

"The Rules office was a great place," Cole told Axios. "But I'm not Rules chairman anymore."

 

But Cole recently got a new job. He took over as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, a panel that oversees government funding, after Rep. Kay Granger of Texas opted to step down. Cole opted to let Granger keep her existing office space in a show of respect, leaving him without a space in the Capitol for cigar-puffing.

"We desperately need a place to smoke cigars," said Cole.

Several House Republicans backed Cole up, saying that having a space for cigar smoking in the Capitol was important for mentoring newer colleagues and building relationships, especially in a place with as much GOP infighting as the House of Representatives.

"There's no better time to build a relationship than over a cigar," Rep. Guy Reschenthaler of Pennsylvania told Axios. "You can actually have a long conversation with somebody, and it really leads to building bridges."

 

In general, Republicans are more likely than Democrats to be smokers at the Capitol. Rep. Troy Nehls, a Republican former sheriff from Texas, can often be seen lighting up a cigar at the top of the House steps after votes.

And the smoking trend extends to some younger staffers as well.

"My Senate office probably has the highest ratio of smokers of anybody in the US Senate," Republican Sen. JD Vance of Ohio told Business Insider in January. "So there's probably something to be said there."

[Tunkat92]

That may be the first logical thing I have heard come out of politicians mouth. 

[BrightonCorgi]

I've seen Troy Nehls on TV doing interviews with a lit cigar. 

How's the smoking laws in DC? Are there any cigar lounges? If you can smoke the steps of Congress, it must be fairly lenient. 

Boston's tallest building is the John Hancock tower. There use to be a smoking lounge in a below ground floor. The room ended up being so popular, that non-smokers were hanging out there after work since it was so "happening". Bain Capital ended up needing those floors for parking and a beloved after work retreat was for no more.

[BoliDan]

We should all have a place to smoke at work. I don't have one either, and I can't even light up outside on the office site. But these entitled asses that are always demanding raises, legal insider trading and better working environment can get their butts in an uber and support a local lounge.

[SCgarman]

Rob, with all due respect isn't going down the "US politics" rabbit hole a prohibited place? I have been placed "on leave" on more than one occasion for said subject matter. Just sayin'🙄

[El Presidente]

10 hours ago, SCgarman said:

Rob, with all due respect isn't going down the "US politics" rabbit hole a prohibited place? I have been placed "on leave" on more than one occasion for said subject matter. Just sayin'🙄

We have covered US cigar politics since the beginning of FOH. 

Should someone not be bright enough to know the difference, then they they can drape themselves in the blue or red flag of their choice...and slide overboard. 

[99call]

I remember when the first draft of the smoking ban was released in the UK. It took the journos to realise the pollies had given an exemptions to the Houses of Parliament bars. Literally the only place in the county you could have smoked was a private bar for MPs only...You couldn't make it up.

[Arabian]

9 hours ago, 99call said:

I remember when the first draft of the smoking ban was released in the UK. It took the journos to realise the pollies had given an exemptions to the Houses of Parliament bars. Literally the only place in the county you could have smoked was a private bar for MPs only...You couldn't make it up.

Nice of them, they don’t want to harm anyone else, perhaps they discussed the draft during the ‘private’ party they held during C-19.

[Ford2112]

Make Cigars Great Again '24 !!!

[teamrandr]

I can get behind this.

[99call]

9 hours ago, Arabian said:

Nice of them, they don’t want to harm anyone else, perhaps they discussed the draft during the ‘private’ party they held during C-19.

Rules are for thee...not for me.

[Nevrknow]

4 hours ago, El Presidente said:

There's no better time to build a relationship than over a cigar,

Amen brother. I’m with you. I absolutely love accepting envelopes full of cash when I smoke a cigar.

Who wouldn’t? 😁

[cigaraholic]

There must be a septic tank somewhere they can crawl in.

[Fuzz]

Let them huddle in some godforsaken, windblown corner of the building, outside under the elements with the rest of the masses.

[Shakey]

You can smoke at the Capitol Hill Club, directly across the street from the Capitol building between the Capitol and most of the House member offices. It's a Republican club and I believe the smoke ventilation system was installed for John Boehner when he was Speaker of the House and a member. Have not been there since the pandemic but it was functional in 2019. 

[GerardMichaelTX]

I think a mutually exclusive cigar parlor should be added to congress with the hope that it would show some brevity and unity across party lines. We're all kind of sick of this pendulum and one-sided nonsense and it would be a critical space where these men could talk about the nuances and implications of the legislation they're enacting.

[PigFish]

It is a shame so few understand civil liberties. It is not about a place to meet but about the protection of the minority from the majority. A classic lesson on why democracy is a better process than form of government.

Strike me down if you must! 

[NeoGeo]

This is a great idea, and I suppose would make for a much better location to work across the aisle then the typical ones...bars and strip clubs!