A new ad featuring actor Michael J. Fox will soon be hitting televisions across the state. The ad, paid for by U.S. Senate candidate Claire McCaskill, again links the upcoming Stem Cell initiative to the heated campaign for U.S. Senate.

“Unfortunately Sen. Jim Talent opposes expanding Stem Cell research,” says Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. “Sen. Talent even wanted to criminalize the science that gives us a chance for hope.”

In February, Talent withdrew his support for a bill he co-sponsored to ban all forms of human cloning (including embryonic therapeutic cloning techniques that are seen as crucial to stem cell research), angering many of his pro-life supporters.

Talent has said he personally opposes the current embryonic stem cell ballot initiative, instead favoring research involving adult stem cells.

UPDATE: This video from a Chicago TV station and this story in USA Today outlines some of the controversy stemming (no pun intended) from Michael J. Fox’s ad and comments made in response by conservative radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh.

Related Story:

Fox/McCaskill Stem Cell Ad Response

THE POST NEEDS ADS — For the second day in a row, the Post-Dispatch ran a full-page ad pleading with political campaigns to advertise in its pages. “Attention Candidates: We can help you win the vote,” read Tuesday’s ad on page A7.

TAX RETURNS RETURN — The GOP continues to try to make Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Claire McCaskill’s husband an issue in her campaign.

The Missouri Republican Party issued a press release this morning blasting McCaskill and her husband, Joseph Shepard, for refusing to release his tax returns to the media.

“With a family fortune of between $13 million and $30 million amassed through taxpayer-financed tax credits, hundreds of government subsidized real estate partnerships and an offshore tax shelter in Bermuda, McCaskill and Shepard for months have arrogantly refused to release their tax returns even though Sen. Jim Talent and his wife Brenda released theirs long ago,” Republicans said in the press release.

On KWMU’s “St. Louis on the Air” this morning, McCaskill said they have released more than enough information on their personal finances and that her husband’s “complicated” tax returns would just be used to further distract from the important issues of the campaign.

CRACKING OPEN THE PIGGEE BANK — A telling sign of the trouble Missouri Republicans find themselves in is this little bit from Steve Kraske of the Kansas City Star:

“Sen. Kit Bond, a Missouri Republican who has stashed $2.8 million in his political action committee, is spending it. The biggest recipient: Jim Talent, with $450,000.”

We received 15,558 visits in the past 7 days. You really should be advertising your campaign or business here.

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IN THE 4TH - More mysterious automated calls are being placed around the district. After calls were made telling voters to vote for anyone but Jeff Smith, the finger was quickly pointed at Derio Gambaro’s campaign, mostly due to the exchange of negative mailers he and Smith engaged in recent days.

But now calls are going north attacking Amber Boykins‘ legislative record and closing with “so vote for Jeff Smith.” Both Smith and Gambaro have denied having anything to do with these calls. And considering who they attack and who they may effectively help, fingers are now pointing at the campaign of Yaphett El-Amin. She has also denied involvement.

We also have unconfirmed reports of pro-El-Amin robo calls being made with personal messages from former Mayor Freeman Bosley, Jr. (which makes sense seeing as he is a vocal supporter of El-Amin) and another one with the voice of former U.S. Senator Jean Carnahan (which is harder to believe, but then again maybe she saw Jeff Smith’s movie in which her son is basically characterized as a lazy mama’s boy).

[UPDATE: Congressman Russ Carnahan has issued a statement on his website which says that neither he nor any member of his family is supporting any candidate in this race. Click here to read the full statement.]

IN THE 60TH - Things are getting downright nasty in this state rep race. Sharon Tyus has dropped two attack pieces on Jamilah Nasheed contrasting, among other things, her Christian background with Nasheed’s Islamic faith.

Nasheed is also drawing criticism from some for yard signs asking voters in the district to punch #38 Tuesday if they support livable wages. That is of course her punch number, but — except for a tiny “paid for by” disclaimer — her name is not visible on the sign.

Meanwhile, Shaun Simms dropped a piece listing U.S. Senate Candidate Claire McCaskill among his supporters. It even has a picture of Simms with McCaskill along with Sen. Barack Obama and Simms’ wife, the current 60th Rep, Amber Boykins. The photo appears to have been taken when Obama was in town in support of McCaskill.

A quick call to McCaskill’s headquarters confirms what most would expect, the State Auditor is staying as far out of these Democratic primary fights as possible. She has endorsed no one.

UPDATE 2: IN THE 72ND - The state rep rematch between incumbent Maria Chappelle Nadal and Sandra Colquitt is among the nastiest in the region. Count this one among the races mostly likely to get physical Tuesday. A mysterious and unaccredited website (www.colquittunfit.com) has popped up attacking Colquitt using clips from The Lizz Brown Show, The Arch City Chronicle and The Post-Dispatch.

Some voters in south St. Louis received an anonymous automated phone call today telling them to vote for anyone but Jeff Smith in Tuesday’s state senate election. Many Smith supporters immediately pointed the finger at Derio Gambaro, Smith’s chief competitor for the important southside vote.

“Jeff Smith is a part-time professor of African-American Studies,” says a male voice that sounds kind of like Gambaro’s — but even if he was behind the calls, he probably wouldn’t use his own voice.

“He is also the only candidate running that lacks any legislative or government experience. Jeff Smith is a carpetbagger,” the voice continues. “We need a senator with experience and commitment to our community, not Jeff Smith.”

There is no doubt that even many less partisan voters are thinking Gambaro is to blame, primarily because he and Smith have been going back and forth with negative campaign mailers directed at these same voters. In one memorable piece, Gambaro jokes that Smith’s Confluence Charter School is “even worser then [sic] St. Louis Public Schools.”

Gambaro told PUB DEF this evening that he was aware of the calls and deeply upset about it. “This is why people get turned off to politics,” he said. He flatly denied having anything to do with the calls.

Blogger Larry Handlin recorded the call. Click here to listen.

UPDATE: State Rep. Yaphett El-Amin, another candidate for the 4th District State Senate seat, also denied knowing anything about the call when contacted by phone.

Her campaign has also started attacking Smith, who many see as the frontrunner in this race, on local black radio stations. An El-Amin commercial running on 95.5 FM asks voters if Smith thinks they are stupid for listing a vacant lot as his district address on early campaign documents.

UPDATE 2: Smith is trying to turn the phantom calls into a fundraising tool. In an email to supporters, he calls the calls “a combination of misrepresentations and outright lies” and asks them to contribute to his campaign via his website “then add $1 to show that you are giving in response to this email.”

“I don’t care about the amount,” said Smith. “I just want to show that the community will not tolerate this kind of campaigning.”

The battle for the southside vote is heating up as attacks between the two white State Senate candidates, Jeff Smith and Derio Gambaro, go back and forth in the mailboxes of 5th District voters south of Delmar.

Gambaro attacked Smith on his involvement with the Confluence Academy Charter Schools:

Smith attacked Gambaro on his support of Social Security reform:

Gambaro attacked Smith again on his charter schools:

Then Smith called Gambaro a “Republican in Democrat’s clothing”:

Then Gambaro said Smith would say anything to get elected:

You know, if white people just stopped fighting one another, they might be able to get something done for their communities.

That’s sarcasm, people.

State Rep. Candidate Joe Palm didn’t like that we produced a commercial for his opponent, Talibdin El-Amin, and he let us know about it.

He reminded us how much of a fan he’s been of PUB DEF since our early days as an irregularly published print newspaper.

His words reminded us of a video we shot a few weeks ago at an event in Fairground Park.

Palm’s been endorsed by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Arch City Chronicle. For more info on Palm, go to www.JoePalm.com.

It’s hot all over, but it might be getting even hotter in the 60th State Rep District. Jamilah Nasheed’s campaign today mailed out a piece that asks voters if they want to go “backwards” or move “forward.” The mailer slams Nasheed’s opponent, Sharon Tyus, on her record as the former alderman of the 20th Ward.

“Improved her home and block while the rest of the ward decayed,” Nasheed’s piece charges. “Refused to join the Aldermanic Black Caucus,” “Fought against the city’s first black mayor,” and “Arrogant to the core,” it says.

Click the pictures to enlarge.

The following is a paid advertisement:

Learn more about T.D. El-Amin at www.tdelamin.com.

Paid for by Committee for El-Amin 57th; Lizzie Bastain, Treasurer.

(It’s not too late to advertise on PUB DEF. Call Antonio at 314-779-9958.)

As you may have heard, or even seen, Jim Talent is using his considerable financial advantage over his Democratic challenger, Claire McCaskill, to start running television commercials rather early, with well over three months before the November general election.

You can view those commercials on Talent’s website, along with little intros by the senator himself. “It’s kind of like the director’s commentary on a DVD,” Talent says about the Internet broadcast.

Click here to view Talent’s director cuts.