NEW YORK (AP) - Actor Michael J. Fox on Friday urged President George W.
Bush and the newly elected Democratic Congress to work together to pass
legislation backing stem cell research.
Fox, 45, also called on Bush to reconsider his policy of strict limits
on federal funding for the work. Bush "has acknowledged that the people
of America want change, and he has pledged to work with new
congressional leaders," Fox said in a statement. "He could take no
stronger action than signing legislation that finally expands our
nation's commitment to stem cell research."
Fox also thanked Democratic leaders for their willingness to focus on
stem cell research "as one of their first priorities."
Fox, who has Parkinson's disease, supports embryonic stem cell research
as a possible cure for Parkinson's, as well other diseases.
He drew criticism from some conservatives for a Missouri political ad
that showed him visibly shaking while urging viewers to vote yes for
stem-cell ballot initiative and for a Democratic Senate candidate over
the Republican incumbent. The initiative narrowly passed on Tuesday.
The Canadian-born Fox, who starred on TV's "Family Ties" as well as the
"Back to the Future" films, was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 1991 and
disclosed his condition publicly in 1998.
In 2000, he quit full-time acting because of his symptoms and founded
the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, which has raised
millions of dollars.