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...."The vaccine, Gardasil, is manufactured by Merck, which was represented in Austin by the lobbyist Mike Toomey, who was chief of staff for Mr. Perry from 2002 to 2004." [NOTE: Three years earlier]
The governor’s office denied any connection between the governor’s proposal and Mr. Toomey. A Merck spokesman declined to comment on the company’s lobbying.
But Merck, which had begun a campaign for Gardasil in legislatures around the country, reacted to growing opposition to proposed vaccine mandates by announcing in late February that it was dropping its legislative campaign...."
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I saw nothing about Merck "desperate for cash" -- so I did some checking for that time in early 2007, when you say a political pac for Rick Perry received $6000:
Merck in $2.3 billion tax settlement with IRS -- In this article the business reporter concludes that Merck's reported cash flow seems more than adequate.
Just out of curiosity, did Merck try this Gardasil stunt in any other state - or was Perry the only one to take the bait?
I can’t seem to find any other states that mandate or attempted to mandate it, not even California or other left-wing states.