Lance Armstrong maybe smokin' on the bike, but he is certainly not smoking in Texas his home state.
Today the seven time Tour de France Champion is set to use his star power and get involved in local politics by supporting an anti-smoking bill in the Texas Legislature.
According to the Associated Press, "He is scheduled to appear at a news conference to release public polling data showing widespread support for a ban on smoking in public places.
It won't be the first time Armstrong has ventured into the political arena. In 2007, the testicular cancer survivor was instrumental in helping pass a multibillion dollar bond initiative to pay for cancer research and he has hosted televised cancer forums with presidential candidates."
"The comeback is as much about bringing awareness to this fight against cancer as it is about winning the Tour de France," Armstrong told The Associated Press today, three days after finishing 29th at the Tour of Australia. "It all ties in and these are all key parts."
This is an issue of people's rights," to avoid second-hand smoke, Armstrong added.
"Nobody's saying you can't smoke a cigarette, but you don't have to do it around me and my kids."
According to the Smoke Free Texas web site"
"Secondhand smoke kills 53,000 non-smoking Americans yearly and is a known cause of lung cancer, heart disease, low birth weight, chronic lung ailments (such as bronchitis and asthma) and other health problems. To address this health issue, Smoke-Free Texas was created to protect all workers from the dangers of secondhand smoke.
Currently, 24 states have enacted and 14 other states are considering comprehensive smoke-free laws. Smoke-Free Texas is working with state leaders to make Texas among the smoke-free states in 2009.
Smoke-Free Texas also is working with communities throughout the state to pass local comprehensive smoke-free ordinances. Currently 27 cities in Texas have such ordinances."