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No soft sell on stem cell
BY IAN DONNIS
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WEDNESDAY, JULY 28 -- Although US Representative James Langevin of Rhode Island isn’t exactly a liberal when it comes to some social issues, he’s long shown a maverick streak. As secretary of state, Langevin irked his former legislative colleagues by documenting a lack of access to public records in the General Assembly. When a few Catholic Church officials said earlier this year that parishioners should be denied communion if they vote for politicians who support such hot-button issues as abortion, Langevin was rare among Catholic officials in Rhode Island in his willingess to openly criticize the situation. And although Langevin enjoys the unusual distinction of being a pro-life Democrat, he has been an unstinting supporter of stem-cell research. It was no surprise then that the Rhode Island congressman -- who was paralyzed when he was shot in the back as a 16-year-old during a police explorer program in his native Warwick -- got the nod to introduce Ron Reagan, the son of the late Republican icon, during the Democratic National Convention Tuesday night. Although Langevin and Reagan might on the surface seem like strange politcal bedfellows, the personal often becomes the political. Both men back stem-cell research as a way of curing ailments that have touched their own lives -- spinal damage in Langevin’s case, Alzheimer’s in Reagan’s. In an interview with Fox News, Langevin had cited stem-cell research as an issue that transcends partisan differences. The subtext when he introduced Reagan was quite different, though, since John F. Kerry backs the research, and President Bush is strongly opposed to it. Certainly, the pairing of Langevin, who has impressed many with his pluck in building a political career after suffering a disabling injury, made for a golden moment for the Democrats. It seemed no coincidence that Langevin quoted President Reagan during his two-minute DNC address, likening the possibilities of stem-cell research with the need for people to dream "heroic dreams." Langevin’s pro-life stand no doubt still irks some of his constituents. But the congressman, who moved his wheelchair with ease through a crowd during the festive annual party a few months back at AS220, a nonprofit arts organization in Providence, has shown his ability to be similarly determined while grappling with complex moral issues.
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