Posted on 12/28/2007 11:08:14 AM PST by La Enchiladita
On August 9, 2001, President Bush announced a compromise decision on the contentious question of whether the federal government should provide financial support for research into the curative properties of human stem cells extracted from embryos.
Bush’s compromise allowed funding for research into embryonic stem cells that had already been harvested. At the same time, he disallowed funding for procedures that would collect stem cells from frozen (but still living) embryos, since doing so would require their destruction. In the case of those already collected, he said, “The life-or-death decision has already been made.” But that life-or-death decision would not be made anew with taxpayer dollars.
...Comparing certain kinds of stem-cell research to the practices of Josef Mengele, the notorious Nazi doctor, Ken Connor of the socially conservative Family Research Council called the decision a “blot” on Bush’s record. Judie Brown, the president of the American Life League, told the Times that the President “can no longer describe himself as pro-life.”
The criticism did not subside over time. Democrats sought to use the stem-cell issue to their advantage, and succeeded. Over the next years, to spectacular fundraising effect, the party would tout its vehement opposition to Bush’s policy. In 2006, a close Senate race in Missouri tilted decisively toward the Democrats after the airing of an emotionally affecting television advertisement featuring the actor Michael J. Fox, who suffers from Parkinson’s disease and who attacked the Republican candidate for his retrograde position on the matter. That victory in Missouri was a key factor in the Democratic takeover of the Senate from the GOP in November. When Democratic Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi assumed control of the House of Representatives in early 2007, she declared that undoing the Bush policy was one of her top priorities.
For their part, Republicans have mostly remained in a defensive crouch on the issue, and have tried to avoid discussing it at all. But Bush himself has never wavered, and last year he even used the first two vetoes of his tenure to repel congressional attempts to override the policy.
And then, in November 2007, something remarkable happened. Two of the world’s leading scientific journals, Cell and Science, published findings from researchers in the United States and Japan demonstrating a technique that allows, without the destruction of human embryos, the creation of stem cells identical to those taken from human embryos. The significance of the innovation was undeniable. George Daly, a researcher at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, called it “just a spectacular, spectacular advance. It will change everyone’s thinking about the field.” Ian Wilmut, the Scottish researcher who became famous for his role in cloning Dolly the sheep a decade ago, told the Daily Telegraph he would no longer pursue cloning to produce stem cells, making use instead of this new and wholly uncontroversial method.
We do not know enough yet to say whether, or to what degree, Bush’s refusal to allow federal funding to create new embryonic stem-cell lines played a role in compelling scientists to find a different approach to the issue. We do know that, in the aftermath of last November’s announcement, several leading scientists have suddenly testified in public to having harbored the very same moral doubts that led Bush to his 2001 decision. James Thomson, the foremost stem-cell researcher in the United States, put it plainly: “If human embryonic stem-cell research does not make you at least a little bit uncomfortable, you have not thought about it enough.”
...Months before his final announcement, Bush personally set in motion a highly unusual process of deliberation inside the White House. The process combined philosophical and scientific research with investigations into both the morality and the practicality of various policy options. As the White House official primarily responsible for advising the President on this issue, I had a unique perspective on the controversy surrounding it and on the making of the policy announced in August 2001. Now that this policy appears to have been both vindicated and superseded, it seems to me legitimate to speak publicly about the mechanics of what happened inside the White House during those months.
There are all kinds of stem cells. Adults and children have them, animals have them, and they exist in the placenta of pregnant women and in the umbilical cord of infants as well. Stem cells are of special interest because they can “differentiate”—i.e., transform themselves into other cell types—and this ability has suggested that they may present a key to curing diseases and abnormalities at the most basic level of life. As for stem cells derived in particular from human embryos, many scientists believe that they have a unique quality—they are able to transform themselves into any type of cell in the human body. Theoretically, then, an embryonic stem cell could ultimately play a part (in a process using recombined DNA) in replacing any defective body tissue or diseased organ.
...In my first meeting with the President about stem cells, we discussed the basic issue in broad strokes. He was not being asked to assess the legality or even the wisdom of stem-cell research per se. No law in the country banned it, nor was anyone in either party pressing for such a ban. Rather, the question being put to him was whether he would authorize the use of federal funds—i.e., monies allocated by Congress for scientific investigation, to be conducted by the National Institutes of Health, in the area of embryonic stem cells alone.
...Until the end [of the President's months of deliberations], it was unclear where he would come out. “Even the most noble ends,” Bush observed, “do not justify any means, ” and while we must “devote enormous energy to conquering disease, it is equally important that we pay attention to the moral concerns raised by the new frontier of human embryo stem-cell research.” Nevertheless, he concluded, because of its enormous promise, which “we all hope will be fulfilled,” he would now authorize federal funding on, and only on, those embryonic lines that had already been created.
And there the matter stood. Research into embryonic stem cells continued, with and without federal funding. Democrats sought political advantage. Republicans fretted. In 2004, voters in California approved $3 billion in taxpayer dollars to fund embryonic stem-cell research in their own state. Last November, voters in New Jersey went in the opposite direction, rejecting a measure similar to California’s that would have cost them $450 million. And then, only days after the New Jersey vote, came the announcement that it would no longer be necessary to use embryos to do embryonic stem-cell research.
Ping to a comprehensive first-hand account of President Bush’s process of determining his position re funding of embryonic stem cell research, a process in part necessitated by finagling on the part of the prior Clinton administration.
See the end of the article for future issues that may arise.
That is a very interesting article.
Cordially,
Thanks for reading it. I find it thought-provoking.
I understand that they can now steal a cell or two from an embryo without injuring it. That changes the nature of the stem cell/embryo debate.
It doesn’t, however, change the nature of the pro-abortionist’s decisions to applaud abortion, plead for them, and federally fund them with my tax dollars.
You are referring to the Democrats, of course.
Or, are you asserting that President Bush is a pro-abortionist?
Any candidate with a pro-abortion record.
You’re not speaking to this article. Did you read it?
Yes, I read it. My first comment was twofold. The first part dealt with the article. The 2nd part expanded from stem-cell to pro-life (the reason that stem cell was a problem in the first place.)
My next post was a response to your query about my pro-life comment.
Makes me even more impressed with Romney's stance on this issue. All the other candidates seem to be afraid of the issue.
Hah, I did a search yet Smithee’s post didn’t come up.
Well, anyway, the article is definitely a keeper.
Romney’s stand is no different from GWB’s exhaustively researched conclusion.
You know the result would have been FAR different with a Democrat.
As I see it, a hard right approach to this contenious issue is a loser with the public. I am impressed that Romeny has taken a stance, unlike most other candates. He also took a very acceptable stance.
It is a shame that these issues are so politicized. If you say one word supporting any facet of stem cell research, you get slammed from the right. If you are totally against stem cell research, Micheal J Fox might run an ad against you and you lose your election.
Bush is going to end up being a great or near-great president.
yep - absolutely.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.