Presidential candidate John Kerry was in New Hampshire again today.
But while the Democrat touched on most of the same themes, he revisited some old material... the President's stand on stem cell research.
NHPR Correspondent Roger Wood reports.
During Town Hall style appearance in Hampton, Senator Kerry promised to take steps to balance the Federal budget and roll back tax cuts for the wealthy.
And he proposed using use the revenue to increase health care coverage for the working poor and establish a college tax credit program.
But the main theme of the event was to criticize President Bush's policies on Stem Cell research.
And to make that criticism hit home, Kerry brought along actor Michael J. Fox who says the President has placed too many restrictions on the research.
(Fox) :16
�He decided to allow it to go forward, but he so restricted the stem cell lines available to us, it was kind of like to he gave us a car and no gas, and he congratulated himself for giving us the car. And we sat there, and we sit there still.�
This issue is particularly relevant for Fox who suffers from Parkinson�s, a degenerative nerve disease.
Fox went on to say that the President�s decision to allow research on only 60 stem cell lines, hampers the ability of science to find cures for many diseases including Parkinson's, Alzheimer�s and cancer.
The Bush campaign responded that the President is actually the first in history to fund over $200 million dollars in stem cell research.
But Kerry charged that the Administration is not doing enough.
Speaking to a packed gymnasium at Winnacunnett High School, the Massachusetts senator said that right now, the Bush Administration is effectively witholding pioneering treatments that could improve people's lives.
(Kerry ) :18
�The hard truth is when it comes to stem cell research, this President is making the wrong choice to sacrifice science for extreme right wing ideology, and that�s unacceptable� (applause)
Kerry also sought to put another human face on the issue.
He passed the microphone to Steven Walter, a Londonderry man whose young son is afflicted with juvenile diabetes
(Walter) :19
�Diabetes is a life threatening and debilitating disease. During his teens, Alex can suffer from retinopathy, a severe eye disease or even blindness. In his twenties, he could suffer from nerve damage and possible amputations. By the time Alex is thirty, he could suffer from stroke, heart attack or kidney failure.�
Walter said that stem cell research offers hope to his son and millions of other Americans like him.
But aside from the central issue of the forum, Kerry found himself having to defend a comment from last week�s debate with the President.
The Bush campaign has been pressing the democrat on what Kerry called the need for passing the global test before launching a preemptive strike against an enemy.
(Kerry) :15
�What I said in the sentence preceding that was I will never cede America�s security to any institution or to any other country. No one gets a veto over our security�no-one.�
He called the President�s response to the debate remarks pathetic and an attempt to scare Americans about Kerry�s position on national security.
For NHPR News, this is Roger Wood.
