BURNING A SMOKE AT BOTH ENDS--Rep. E.J. Thomas, R-Columbus, chairs a meeting of a joint House-Senate committee, at the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Thursday, Oct. 14, 1999. Thomas also chairs the House Finance-Appropriations Committee, the panel scheduled to hear a bill that will determine how Ohio spends its tobacco settlement money. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported today that Thomas is negotiating a job with a firm seeking a lucrative state contract funded by the settlement. (JACK KUSTRON/photoj.com)