To: Karen Lawrence who wrote (60145 ) 10/13/2004 12:59:35 PM From: Karen Lawrence Respond to of 89467 Eli Lilly company manufactures the thimerasol. Senator bill frist is Eli Lilly's friend. And Bush's buddy. The autism increase isn't a crisis. It's a crime against the children of this country - children born healthy, whose minds are destroyed by Eli Lilly: Frist used money to make friends By Steve Weis Guest Columnist By the time incoming Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott relinquished his leadership post recently (following racially insensitive remarks he had made earlier) the contest to succeed him had largely been sewn up by Tennessee Sen. Bill Frist. Frist, who chaired the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for the past two years, had spent the last several weeks basking in the glow of a midterm election that saw Republicans regain control of the Senate. The GOP felt so indebted to Frist that President Bush reportedly considered offering him a high-level administration post as a show of appreciation. The job offer never came, but the White House found another way to thank Frist, with whom it worked closely to engineer the Republicans' victory last month. By publicly distancing itself from the embattled Lott and quietly expressing its support of Frist, the administration is credited with paving the way for the dramatic transfer of power that began when Lott stepped aside. The Senate's only physician, Frist has won over colleagues with what some have described as a cordial bedside manner. Eli Lilly manufactures Thimerosal, a vaccine preservative that has been alleged to cause autism in children. Lilly, the top donor among pharmaceutical manufacturers, gave $1.6 million in individual, PAC and soft money contributions in the 2001 to 2002 election cycle, 79 percent to Republicans. Lilly's PAC has given Frist $9,000 since 1997.midweeknews.com