The Anti-Sam Brownback Blog

In the New Jersey Governor’s election, Democrat John Corzine convincing trounced Doug Forrester in a race that was hailed by pundits as a possible sign of future republican electoral troubles. While this race was interesting on many levels, I think the most important landmark event was Democrat John Corzine’s usage of stem cell research as an effective wedge issue. The TV ad with a quadriplegic talking about stem cell research was devastatingly simple and to the point. Plus, it garnered a ton of free media coverage.

There were no public exit polls in NJ, so the exact effect of the stem cell push may never be known. However, based upon conventional wisdom I think conservative republicans should be scared. Senator Sam Brownback especially should be aware that his opposition to stem cell research could sink his campaign.

Brownback’s position on the issue is indefensible. Few people when faced with the choice of incinerating an embryo or using it for life saving research would choose incineration on principle. Senator Sam Brownback’s insistence that stem cell research is a matter of “life” is correct. It is a possibility for millions of Americans to live better lives.

Brownback, and every other republican who opposes stem cell research should be scared. If an anti research republican runs in 2008, s/he will be decimated with ads on the issue. The Corzine strategy is only the beginning. Democrats will stand up for the millions of Americans who need these treatments. We will not let religious dogma cause them a lifetime of pain and agony.

The voters will be with us. From the Philadelphia Enquirer:

Other advocates, such as Tricia Riccio, a Warren County mother of a quadriplegic teenager, said she had not given up hope for Codey’s proposals.

She is, however, the kind of voter Forrester fears: Riccio said she and her family would vote for Corzine solely because he supported embryonic stem-cell research, which she believes could someday allow her son Carl to walk again.

“My husband and I are lifelong Republicans who switched our parties because of the need for stem-cell research,” Riccio said. “This issue matters more for us than anything else.”