TRAVERSE CITY AND CADILLAC -- With the November 4th election about two weeks away, many political issues are taking center stage, right here in northern Michigan. 

Proposal 2 would amend the state constitution to address human embryo and human embryonic stem cell research. 

Human embryonic stem cell research is legal in Michigan.  But proposal 2 is aiming to take further by allowing un-restricted and un-regulated experimentation, and this has a local group in opposition.

"It does things that will be tough to go back and change.  It takes away all state and local insight and places an oversight on the federal government," says representative for MiCause a group that's against Proposal 2, Anthony Weber.

"The bill is the most radical bill written in our nation regarding un-regulated use of human embryos...so right there it puts us at a wide open level," says MiCause representative, Dr. Lynn Swan.
 
The organization MiCause, which is against un-restricted science research held a public information session in Traverse City to explain their views against the proposal.

"The taxpayers will always end up footing the bill for this research...and it creates a lot of ethical dilemmas that other research is doing away with.  There's so many options with adult stem cells and different types of stem cells that are being worked with to make them act like embryonic stem cells...we don't need a proposal like this to heal diseases," says Weber.

Yet, Rick Johnson, with the Cure Michigan board, which worked to get Proposal 2 on the ballot, disagrees.
 
"I have a brother who was hurt years ago and at this point with medical science, we can't really do much for him.  Today my mother is a diabetic from the type of research going on, this is the type of research that hopefully could help those kinds of people," says Johnson.
 
Although it's a personal matter that drove Johnson to support the proposal, he wants voters to realize what Proposal 2 entails.

"This proposal is talking about taking thrown away, discarded embryos from fertility clinics that have access embryos from people...Therefore the rest can be donated if this passes for research facilities in Michigan...I also want to say that this proposal has absolutely nothing to do with raising taxes as the opponents keep saying," says Johnson.

For information on MiCause you can check out their website at: http://www.micause.com/2goes2far.html

For information on Cure Michigan you can check out their website at: http://www.curemichigan.com/