The players at the table weren't the only ones. Behind the scenes others were working away... Chairman of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, Republican Point Man on Tobacco "I don't think there's any doubt that the influence of the tobacco industry here in Congress was a compelling argument for campaign finance reform. And they did have significant influence. I would also argue that if it had not been for the agreement negotiated with the attorney's generals, then we probably would not be where we are in attempting to reach some kind of overall settlement." Former chief strategist to President Clinton "When the history of the 20th century is written, there are going to be some pretty obscure people who are entitled to sainthood. Nobody is going to know their names, and I don't know if they'll go on to do anything else in their lives. But Scruggs and Moore have earned their place in heaven." Vice President of the United States, Key Supporter in the Administration's Position on Tobacco Policy Dr. David Kessler of the FDA about the Vice-President: "The Vice President, in the end, made this happen. We went to the Vice President. We told the Vice President what we knew, what we found, what our conclusions were. We told him what we were ready to do and he carried it to the president.... "We made a decision that nicotine was a drug under the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act. That was our decision. We didn't ask for permission to make that decision, we didn't ask for clearance on that decision. But we did as is normal policy, have to get a clearance on any regulation. So we brought the regulation through the normal channels, but in the end it was the Vice President going into the President." Anti-tobacco activist, Professor at the School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco "I thought it was horrible. I thought it was premature, I thought it was a sellout, I thought that this was the beginning of the divergence of the public interests and the interests of these lawyers, and that it was a mistake. The proper place to fight the tobacco industry is not in the United States Congress. If you were the Starship Enterprise and you searched the entire universe for the place where the tobacco industry had the most power, it would be the United States Congress. Particularly this Congress, which was put there in no small measure by tobacco industry money and influence. So you want to stay away from that. If you're in a war with a well-armed enemy you don't rush into their citadel to fight with them; you try to get them to fight on your terms." Former Vice President, Brown & Williamson Tobacco "I had what I would consider some moral compass issues that I was dealing with in terms of what principle do I need...is my guiding principle here? And I wanted to get the truth out. I wanted to make sure it got out. I felt that the industry as a whole had defrauded the American public. And there were things that I felt needed to be said." Trial Attorney, Lead Plaintiff's Lawyer, Medicaid Suits "So, yes, mainly, my job is to try the law suit. Prepare it for trial. And their job is to try to find a way, a solution to the litigation problems. Although I'll say this, in the cigarette cases Dickie was heavily involved in discovery for a while until the negotiations heated up. And in the asbestos cases, Joe and I have tried many cases together in front of juries but in the last two or three years, it has become they are outside the courtroom and I am inside the courtroom."   CEO, Brooke Group, Owner of Liggett Tobacco Company "And the truth of all this, I didn't believe the strategy these tobacco companies are following. I mean none of the strategy made sense. Intellectually, I just didn't believe it. You have to win every lawsuit. There's nothing here. We're never going to lose. And also recognize that Liggett is the smallest of all the tobacco companies. From a financial point of view, I also said to myself, we can't afford to lose even one lawsuit, one Medicaid case. We go immediately bankrupt. So, from a financial point of view, at this time, I figured it was the right thing to do, to make a settlement. Why stay in court the rest of your life? The other companies have this scorched earth policy that we're going to spend, and spend, and spend, and spend, and spend, and win and win and win. And I didn't want to become a satellite of Philip Morris with them paying my legal fees, or a subsidiary of them."