On January 15, 1965, Senator Warren G. Magnuson (D-WA), chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, introduced S. 559 requiring cigarette packages to bear a conspicuous statement: “Warning: Continual Cigarette Smoking May be Hazardous to Your Health.” S. 559 also removed a threat to tobacco interests by prohibiting any other health warning by federal, state, or local entities and effectively pre-empting the Federal Trade Commission regulation of tobacco labeling or advertising. This March 24, 1965 letter from Acting Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Charles S. Murphy, to Senator Magnuson indicated that the tobacco interests had a powerful government ally that sought to limit the impact of the proposed health warning label.