HALFWAY THROUGH a Republican presidential primary debate hosted by Fox Business, an ad made a jarring argument. President Joe Biden’s proposal to ban menthol cigarettes “will fuel an illicit market, lining the pockets of the Mexican cartels,” warned a man identified as “retired military intelligence.” The spot—whose images included $100 bills, border fencing, and pallbearers carrying a wooden coffin—was paid for by the Border Security Alliance.
Around the same time, radio stations in 14 major cities aired claims that a menthol ban “could have unintended consequences for African Americans.” Listeners who want “our communities” to be “protected and not targeted by the police” should demand that Biden “halt the ban on menthol,” warned ads by the Alliance for Fair and Equitable Policy.
These spots are part of a massive, shadowy push against a ban proposed by the Food and Drug Administration in April 2022. This effort—involving organizations across the
