WASHINGTON (ABP) — The House of Representatives again approved a bill June 7 that would expand embryonic stem-cell research.
But the move came just one day after the release of a scientific study suggesting scientists may, in the future, find a way to circumvent the controversial practice. President Bush and many House Republicans pointed to the news as vindication of their opposition to the stem-cell bill.
The House passed the “Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act” (S. 5) by a 247-176 margin. Thirty-seven Republicans joined 210 Democrats in supporting the bill, while 16 Democrats and 160 Republicans voted against it.
“Science is a gift of God to all of us, and science has taken us to a place that is biblical in its power to cure,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), arguing for the bill.
But Bush quickly vowed to kill the bill with what would be the third veto of his presidency. In a statement issued from Germany, where he is attending the G-8 summit of the world's largest industrialized nations, Bush said he would nix the measure.
“I am disappointed the leadership of Congress recycled an old bill that would simply overturn our country's carefully balanced policy on embryonic stem-cell research,” the statement said. “If this bill were to become law, American taxpayers would for the first time in our history be compelled to support the deliberate destruction of human embryos. Crossing that line would be a grave mistake.”
The House gave final approval to a bill the Senate passed earlier this year. The House also passed a similar — but not identical — measure earlier this year. In 2005, Bush used the first veto of his presidency to kill a stem-cell bill that had passed the then-Republican Congress.
Democratic leaders' move to pass the Senate version of the bill was calculated, because it gives the Senate the first shot at a veto-override vote. The bill did not pass either chamber by a veto-proof majority — but the margin in the Senate was much closer than in the House. That means Senate leaders may have a shot at changing enough votes to gain the required two-thirds majority for an override.
The Senate overriding Bush's veto could put pressure on some House members who had opposed the bill to switch their votes as well. Polls have tended to show broad public support for such research. A recent Gallup survey, for example, said 64 percent of respondents approve of embryonic stem-cell research.
The proposal would greatly expand the government's ability to fund such research. Biologists prize the cells because they can replicate themselves and have the potential to grow into almost any kind of human tissue. Therefore, they may one day be used to replace cells destroyed by diseases — such as Parkinson's — that are currently deadly.
Most conservative religious and anti-abortion groups oppose such research because embryos are destroyed in the process of extracting stem cells. In one of his first acts after he took office in 2001, Bush issued an executive order severely limiting federal funding for such research.
Many of those groups — and Bush — pointed to a study released June 6 in decrying the House's latest vote. Scientists in Japan and the United States revealed that they had created what were effectively embryonic stem cells by using skin cells from mice that had been genetically manipulated. The cells did not come from embryos and did not require a “cloning” procedure, to which many also have ethical objections.
“These reports give us added hope that we may one day enjoy the potential benefits of embryonic stem cells without destroying human life,” Bush said.
But many scientists — including the authors of the research — cautioned that it could be decades before they are able to replicate the procedure in humans.
-30-
Read more:
Stem-cell déjà vu as Senate re-passes while Bush promises repeat veto (4/13/2007)
House passes stem-cell bill again, sets up new showdown (1/12/2007)
Bush uses first veto in office on popular stem-cell bill (7/19/2006)