NY Times: Gillibrand had closer ties to big tobacco

Kirsten Gillibrand has downplayed her role in defending big tobacco when she was a corporate attorney. The issue was a semi-major issue during her last House race against Sandy Treadwell.

Now the New York Times says her footprint on the litigation was much larger than previously disclosed.

Ms. Rutnik [Gillibrand’s maiden name], who now goes by her married name, Gillibrand, threw herself into the work. She traveled to Germany at least twice, interviewing the lab’s top scientists, whose research showed a connection between smoking and cancer but was kept far from public view.

She helped contend with prosecution demands for evidence and monitored testimony of witnesses before a grand jury, following up with strategy memos to Philip Morris’s general counsel.