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A week after introducing legislation trumpeted as one of the most comprehensive and aggressive laws to help keep young people from using tobacco, the Liberals are supporting amendments that gut the essence of the bill and have opposition members declaring victory for Big Tobacco.

When Bill 60 was originally introduced, it called for a ban on all flavoured tobacco products as well as the flavoured e-juice used in e-cigarettes, but maintained an exemption for menthol. The bill would also ban the use of e-cigarettes anywhere traditional cigarettes are banned, enforce display and advertising restrictions on the products and ban the use of hookah pipes in public places.

Dozens of witnesses at a law amendments committee meeting on Monday testified that e-cigarettes have helped them quit smoking and they called for e-juices to be exempted from the flavour ban. A number of people spoke about the culture significance of the hookah. Only tobacco industry lobbyists spoke against the proposed ban on flavoured tobacco products.

Kelly Cull of the Canadian Cancer Society said that while she wouldnt have been surprised to see an exemption for e-juices, she was shocked by the Liberals backtracking on flavoured tobacco.

Its completely disheartening, she said. This was a component of the legislation that was entirely rooted in fact. The science has consistently told us that 50 per cent of teen tobacco users in this province use flavoured tobacco.

So the flip flop on this is astonishing . . . I wish I had a better understanding of the rationale.

Liberal committee members were unable to provide that rational.

Sackville-Beaver Bank MLA Stephen Gough said youth smoking is a major concern of the government. Pressed on how that view mixes with removing the ban on flavoured tobacco, Gough said he wasnt 100 per cent sure on why the decision was made.

East Hants MLA Margaret Miller said she was comfortable with the governments decision because it shows they are listening to the people. Although it was pointed out that only industry lobbyists spoke against the flavoured tobacco ban, Miller rejected the idea the government was caving to industry.

As Liberal MLAs attempted to duck away from TV cameras and reporters, a Health and Wellness Department staffer hurriedly handled out a news release saying the government would spend the next year consulting with the public about the question of flavoured tobacco and e-juices.

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Liberals choke when faced with flavoured tobacco, e-juice ban

NDP MP Peggy Nash on the Liberals giving blind support to signing any new trade deal
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NDP MP Peggy Nash on the Liberals giving blind support to signing any new trade deal - Video

BATON ROUGE, LA. Mary Landrieus reelection could help Democrats hang onto the Senate, but liberals have abandoned her anyway.

Large national environmental groups, womens organizations and unions are barely lifting a finger for the embattled Louisiana Democrat, who has close ties to the oil industry and supports the states same-sex marriage ban.

And while unions and greens have never been big players here and a centrist like Landrieu might not even want the public nod of progressives in a red state, their money, advertising and get-out-the-vote ground game could help her. Landrieus in a close race that could send her into a prolonged and expensive runoff against Republican Rep. Bill Cassidy, if a third party candidate prevents either of them from picking up more than half the vote on Election Day.

(Full 2014 election results)

The groups decision to stay on the sidelines in a key race is also a reminder that its not just the Republican Party that deals with internal fights over ideological purity. The Democratic Party, too, has a movement wing willing to abandon members of their own party they believe are insufficiently liberal.

When it comes to Mary Landrieu, sticking with Big Oil is kind of the polar opposite of economic populism, said Adam Green, the Progressive Change Campaign Committees co-founder.

The group, which says it represents the Elizabeth Warren wing of American Progress and focuses on a message of economic populism, isnt supporting Landrieu this cycle, even though it is backing other endangered Democrats like Mark Udall of Colorado, Bruce Braley of Iowa and Mark Begich of Alaska. The group has raised more than $1.4 million for candidates and campaigns this cycle.

(POLITICO's 2014 race ratings)

Most major environmental organizations also havent given Landrieu a cent and pro-green billionaire Tom Steyers super PAC even toyed earlier this year with targeting her for supporting the proposed Keystone XL pipeline.

We have not been involved in that race because Landrieu had not been an ally on many issues, particularly energy ones, League of Conservation Voters President Gene Karpinski said.

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Liberals abandon Landrieu

Joe Scarborough: Only smart liberals and smart conservatives "watch this show"
"THIS VIDEO IS FAIR USE UNDER U.S. COPYRIGHT LAW BECAUSE IT IS (1) NON-COMMERCIAL, (2) TRANSFORMATIVE IN NATURE, (3) USES NO MORE OF THE ORIGINAL WORK THAN N...

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Joe Scarborough: Only smart liberals and smart conservatives "watch this show" - Video

Fun With Liberals - Marijuana Banks
Today Brian Lovig talks on 7 Reasons Why Liberals Are Incapable of Understanding The World Even liberals who #39;ve accomplished a lot in their lives and have hi...

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