Letter: FDA already has enough on its plate

Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2007 | 7:04 a.m.

I have to disagree with the Las Vegas Sun's Feb. 20 editorial, headlined "Butting in on tobacco," in which it supports a Senate bill that would give the Food & Drug Administration regulatory responsibility and direct government control over the $75 billion tobacco industry.

Yes, it's true that "tobacco use kills." But a lot of things are potentially deadly: driving a car, riding a bike, eating a hamburger, even taking a bath. Where will government regulation end?

This bill is just another move by the government to further extend its reach into the daily lives of its citizens. Actions like this are pushing us further and further into a nanny state society. If anything, Americans need freedom from government control, not an additional extension of its power.

The last thing Congress should do is give an already overly burdened public safety agency this enormous new power and responsibility. Even with nearly $2 billion a year in funding, the FDA is having difficulty fulfilling its primary mission.

The weaknesses of the FDA are constantly exposed by the long list of senior citizens waiting for approval of drug applications and the recent recalls of foods such as spinach and peanut butter. Congress needs to focus on making the FDA more efficient instead of giving it more responsibility.

Chuck Muth, Carson City

The writer is president of Citizen Outreach, a policy organization that promotes limited government.