Priority: Smokers, Not Students??

An excerpt from http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/homepage-feature/item/69972-cigarette-tax-for-philly-schools-clears-major-hurdle-in-pa-house?linktype=hp_impact

RE: The Cigarette Tax

"Before the House voted, Rep. Daryl Metcalfe, R, Butler County, urged lawmakers to vote 'no,' calling the the measure a regressive tax that would negatively affect poor Philadelphians from the "inner city" who were "addicted to nicotine.""

Dear Rep Metcalfe, 
Your concern is for Philadelphians who are poor and are smokers but not for the effects that poverty has on our students' educational opportunities, resources, and limitless possibilities?

Signed,
All of Us