Nov 5, 2007 9:35 pm US/Pacific
Michael J. Fox Pushes For N.J. Stem Cell Research
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) ―
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Actor Michael J. Fox is asking New Jersey voters to support borrowing $450 million for stem cell research in Tuesday's election. (File)
CBS
An actor suffering from Parkinson's and a paralyzed New York City police officer are running radio ads on New Jersey's stem cell research ballot question, but they're not on the same side of the emotional debate playing out in the Garden State.
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Actor Michael J. Fox is asking New Jersey voters to support borrowing $450 million for stem cell research in Tuesday's election.
Former police officer Steve McDonald is asking voters to reject it.
Fox's ads are funded by the political action committee New Jersey for Hope, which received $150,000 to run ads promoting the question's passage from multimillionaire Democratic Gov. Jon S. Corzine.
Fox suffers from Parkinson's Disease, an incurable, degenerative disordeof the central nervous system.
It's not his first foray into the politics surrounding stem cell research. He appeared in television ads in at least three 2006 Congressional races promoting the research. In those ads, Fox swayed uncontrollably, exhibiting symptoms of his Parkinson's.
Fox has two spots running. In one, he notes how President Bush restricted federal funding for embryonic stem research.
"New Jersey voters have a chance to do what our president won't do, and fund stem cell research to give hope to millions of Americans," Fox says.
New Jersey's funding would pay for both embryonic and adult stem research for 10 years.
"Voting yes gives the best hope for treating and curing diseases like Parkinson's, diabetes and cancer and great promise for addressing spinal cord injuries and birth defects," Fox says.
But McDonald, in an ad funded by the anti-abortion group New Jersey Right to Life, which opposes embryonic research and sued unsuccessfully to halt the ballot question, disagrees.
McDonald has been paralyzed from the neck down for 21 years after being shot on duty as a New York City detective.
"A lot of politicians, many of whom are Democrats like me, say that harvesting embryos will help me walk again, hold my son in my arms and hold my wife again," he says. "So-called fetal tissue research has not produced one cure, not one."
He says the question is "about taking your tax dollars for something that Wall Street and drug companies won't invest in. Think about it."
Critics of embryonic stem cell research are opposed to the process because it requires embryos to be destroyed to harvest their cells.
States and private organizations are permitted to fund embryonic stem cell research, but federal support is limited to cells that existed as of Aug. 9, 2001 under restrictions imposed by President Bush.
Amid those federal restrictions, many states are competing to fund stem cell research. California plans to spend $3 billion on it, while Connecticut has a $100 million program and Illinois and Maryland have awarded $15 million in grants
Corzine allocated $10 million for stem cell work from the state budget earlier this year, and the state has approved spending $270 million on stem cell research facilities.
(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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