Trump Reportedly Told HHS Secretary He ‘Should Never Have Done That F*cking Vaping Thing’

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President Donald Trump reportedly said in a phone call to the Health Secretary that he “should never have done that f*cking vaping thing,” referencing his move to ban flavored e-cigarettes last year.
According to Axios, which cited “two sources familiar with the conversation,” President Trump told U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, “I should never have done that f***ing vaping thing,” in a phone call meeting on Thursday.
Axios also reported that “Azar got defensive after Trump expressed regret for the vaping policy,” however, “Trump wasn’t expressing regret for the specific vaping policy outcome, which the team believes is the right one, but rather for personally wading into vaping and e-cigarette policy in the first place rather than leaving it up to the Food and Drug Administration.”
During the call, President Trump also reportedly asked Azar when drug prices would be lowered and when the U.S. would be receiving more drugs from Canada.
In a statement to the Washington Post, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spokeswoman Caitlin Oakley declared, “We do not comment on conversations or meetings between Secretary Azar and the president… The Trump administration has done more than any other administration in history to lower the high cost of prescription drugs and we fully anticipate this momentum will continue.”
President Trump came out against flavored e-cigarettes in September– expressing concern over their appeal to children.
“Not only is it a problem overall, but really specifically with respect for children,” he declared. “We may very well have to do something very, very strong about it.”
President Trump modified his plans to ban flavored e-cigarettes in November, however, after receiving heavy backlash, and this month it was revealed that while most flavored e-cigarettes would be banned from sale, tobacco and menthol flavors would be excluded.