The Capitol has a huge problem. The place where House Republicans used to smoke cigars no longer belongs to the same person. Some representatives are begging Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to solve this problem. “We desperately need a place to smoke cigars,” Rep. Tom Cole (R-OK) told Axios on Sunday. Another Republican said, “It’s a very important issue.”
The source of this dreadful problem is Cole’s transition to House Appropriations Committee chairman, which has left House Republicans without a private place to puff their cigars, according to the report. Cole lost his hideaway when he opted to let Rep. Kay Granger (R-TX) retain hers after he switched to chair the Rules Committee.
“That’s left Cole without a hideaway of his own and cigar aficionados without a lair,” the report added. House members were once able to smoke in the Speaker’s Lobby, but former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) put a kibosh on the tradition when she became speaker in 2007, Cole said. Some are suggesting Johnson could cede the ceremonial balcony off the House floor back to broader member use as a “smoking porch.” Chief Deputy Whip Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) reportedly quipped that “Plan D or E” would be to smoke in Johnson’s office.
Washington, D.C., requires all public buildings to be smoke-free, and an executive order signed by former President Bill Clinton prohibits smoking in federal buildings. But House lawmakers’ private offices are exempt, making the Capitol one of the few “office buildings” left in the nation where smoking is allowed inside, Bloomberg noted.
Do House Republicans need a chocolate fountain in the dining hall, too? All jokes aside, the cigar office is needed. Congress people are “people,” too. Sometimes they need a place to put their feet up and smoke. I would venture to guess that type of bonding is how some of the only work in Washington gets done.
Some people may laugh at the headline about the cigar office. Why would we reward a group of people with a 13% approval rating? The counter to that is understanding the cigar space as a tool of policymaking. Politicians can sit around and bond over something beyond a game of golf. This practice of smoking cigars keeps them in the Capitol. Cole’s former hideaway was known as a place for members, male and female and especially younger members, to be mentored by more senior colleagues.
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Provide them with the office. This tradition has united people on Capitol Hill for years. Regardless of feelings toward tobacco, that’s undeniable. Members of Congress are people who deserve a space to smoke away from the hectic pace of the Capitol.
“It’s actually a big deal,” another GOP member said, adding that the hideaway under Cole “was a great location to take a break, and it is interesting how many freshmen found it helpful.”
