Nov 2, 2007 7:32 pm US/Eastern
Stem Cell Debate Takes Front And Center In Trenton
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) ―
When New Jersey voters go to the polls on Tuesday, they will be asked to approved spending hundreds of millions of dollars on stem cell research.
It's a move that stirring up quite a bit of controversy, along with plenty of hope among those directly affected.
Diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 2, Charlie Coats, now 14, says stem cell research can change his life. "If we have stem cell research a lot quicker, I won't be scared of, you know, getting a heart. I won't be scared of going blind or losing my feet or dying at the age of 20," he says.
With Gov. Jon S. Corzine on board and asking voters to green light a $450 million stem cell bond issue on Tuesday, everyone from Michael J. Fox to paralyzed police officer Steven McDonald is trying to sway the vote.
"So called 'fetal tissue' has not produced one cure, not one," McDonald says in a broadcast ad.
Adds Fox, who has been one of the country's most vocal fighters for stem cell research as he battles Parkinson's disease: "Vote yes for stem cell research. Why? Because voting yes gives the best hope for treating and curing diseases like Parkinson's, diabetes and cancer."
Corzine, who has donated $150,000 of his own money urging voters to vote yes, says the stem cell bond issue is a great investment for the entire state. "There's a study that says $2.2 billion will come out of the direct investment," he said.
And it won't cost voters much.
"Twenty-six cents per year, per citizen in the first year," Corzine said.
But Bogota Mayor Steve Lonegan, who is fighting the bond issue says otherwise, and believes the people of New Jersey can't afford to borrow more money. "Just $450 million -- why $450 million, that's practically free," he said in a broadcast ad.
"[It's] one of the major reasons people are fleeing New Jersey in droves," Lonegan said. "It's simply time we put a stop to the borrowing and big spending philosophy of Trenton."
Polls show New Jersey voters appear ready to support stem cell research, but the outcome could depends on who shows up at the polls.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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