Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., talks to a Richmond rally for Jim Webb as (from left) Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Va., Richmond Mayor and former Gov. Doug Wilder and former Gov. Mark Warner applaud. ROBERT A. MARTIN/THE FREE LANCE-STAR

With actor Michael J. Fox at his side, Virginia Democratic senatorial candidate Jim Webb energizes the crowd during a campaign reception yesterday evening in Arlington. ROBERT A. MARTIN/THE FREE LANCE-STAR

Sen. George Allen, R-Va., (left) poses with Chris Simcox of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps after a news conference yesterday in Roanoke. The group endorsed Allen. ROBERT A. MARTIN/THE FREE LANCE-STAR

Webb, Allen roundup

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Date published: 11/3/2006

By NATASHA ALTAMIRANO and CHELYEN DAVIS

VIDEO: Democratic Senate candidate Jim Webb speaks at Richmond rally.

Star power turned out yesterday to back Democratic challenger Jim Webb's bid for the U. S. Senate.

Celebrity Michael J. Fox appeared with Webb at a function last night in Arlington. U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., appeared with Webb earlier in the day in Richmond.

Meanwhile, Sen. George Allen, R-Va., was endorsed by the Minutemen, a group opposed to illegal immigration, yesterday in Roanoke. Later in the day he met with workers at the Philip Morris plant in Richmond. Both events were closed to the public.

Webb supports federal funding for all stem-cell research. Allen does not.

For actor Michael J. Fox, the choice is simple.

"A vote for Jim Webb is a vote for hope of a better quality of life for millions of Americans," said Fox, who stumped for Webb at an Arlington bar and concert venue last night.

Fox, who has the neurological disorder Parkinson's disease and is an outspoken supporter of stem-cell research, noted that Allen voted against a bill that passed the House and Senate last summer to expand federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research. President Bush vetoed the bill.

Stem-cell research can be used in developing treatment and cures for cancer, diabetes, spinal-cord injuries, heart disease, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, Fox told a crowd of several hundred journalists and supporters at Clarendon Ballroom.

Webb, a Vietnam veteran and former official in the Reagan administration, is one of several Democrats Fox has endorsed.

The star of the 1980s sitcom "Family Ties" and the "Back to the Future" movie trilogy has appeared in television advertisements supporting U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle, and Clair McCaskill, who's running for a U.S. Senate seat in Missouri.

The ads sparked a controversy when conservative radio talk-show host Rush Limbaugh accused Fox, who shakes uncontrollably as an apparent result of Parkinson's medication, of acting and being "really shameless."

Webb highlighted Limbaugh's behavior as an example of how conservatives seek to maintain power through "bullying."

"His illness is an act? What kind of bullying is that?" Webb said.

Log on to see videos of Jim Webb and Sen. Barack Obama's campaign rally in Richmond. Number of independent voters continues to rise. Page B1 'A vote for Jim Webb is a vote for hope of a better quality of life for millions of Americans.' Michael J. Fox, actor and supporter of federal funding for stem-cell research

Date published: 11/3/2006