New Jersey voters are set to decide whether or not they support state funded stem cell research. With federal funding for stem cell research severely limited because of President Bush's veto, it is up to private industry and individual states to carry the torch of hope on this issue. NJ is looking to follow in the footsteps of California, and become one of only a few states providing governmental funds for this groundbreaking research.
The referendum is set for:
Tuesday, November 6, 2007.
more below the snip.
Abortion opponents lost their hail mary shot at stopping the vote when a NJ appeals court threw out their lawsuit claiming the referendum was illegal, "rejecting claims that it improperly failed to explain the money would allegedly fund human cloning and be paid back through property taxes."
Looks like the activist judges the right decries didn't feel like being too activist yesterday.
Now is the time for New Jersey Democrats to push this issue. There is no excuse for anything less. This how they should do it.
First, an example:
From Drew Westen's The Political Brain, p. 292, now Senator Claire McCaskill from Missouri, debating her rival Senator Talent on Meet the Press:
"My faith directs me to heal the sick. God gave us the miracle of human intelligence to find cures. Our country has never turned its back on medical research and we shouldn't in Missouri.... I respect people who disagree with me on this issue on principle, I understand there are differences. I come down on the side of hope, hope for cures and supporting science. And I think it's very important that someone be principled, strong, and not muddled, but very clear and straightforwards about their position on this issue."
Westen's analysis:
"Normally Democrats are the ones hedging on "values issues." But in this case, the shoe was on the other foot. Talent's moral principle (life begins at birth, so a discarded embryo has the same moral status as a child with diabetes) made clear that he was putting a moral abstraction above the life of a living child. McCaskill artfully contrasted their two opposing moral positions. She appealed to hope and compassion and challenged Talent's religious position with one of her own. In speaking of the miracle of human intelligence, she used a word that signaled to many conservative Christians that she cared about their values and culture, while enunciating a stance with strong appeal to those in the political center. She acknowledged her respect for people with principled stands other than hers but made clear that her stand was a deeply principled one."
New Jersey's Democratic Party should be hitting the airwaves hard this week to increase turnout for this issue. It is pathetic that we haven't seen any significant advertising yet on this, and that their website doesn't even have a mention of this important referendum on its front page. This is an issue that will bring voters to the polls and will help turn out the vote for our democratic candidates for local office next week. It will also help to draw a distinction among our democratic challengers of congressional seats in 2008. Chris Smith, the 4th district Republican glorified for his position on "life" issues, needs to be challenged on this publicly. His challenger, Josh Zeitz (thanks for the correction), needs to go right at him on this.
There needs to be a barrage of discussion and advertising on this issue.
The advertising should target key legislators who oppose the referendum by asking voters to take a closer look at their elected officials and ask themselves:
"Who represents my values?"
We believe that NJ can lead the way on this issue and while we respect those who fundamentally disagree with us on this, we come down on the side of hope, on the side of science, and on the side of cures. We believe in the ingenuity of New Jerseyans and we believe that it is up to us to take care of the sickest among us. We believe that by working together, we can take advantage of this incredible opportunity to help so many people suffering from so many potentially curable diseases. Please join us in passing this important initiative so that New Jersey can be a beacon of hope for the rest of the nation.
Cross-posted at Things I Wish Democrats Would Say