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Baptist Press News
The U.S. House of Representatives voted May 24th to provide federal funds for stem cell research that destroys human embryos. But the vote fell well short of the two-thirds majority needed to override a promised presidential veto. But the House also approved nearly unanimously another stem cell research bill, one that was supported by pro-life members because it does not require embryo destruction. The House voted 238-194 for the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, which would repeal President Bush’s policy prohibiting federal funds for stem cell research that results in the destruction of human embryos. The White House affirmed May 24th that the president would reject the bill, sponsored by Rep. Michael Castle (R.-Del.), which would underwrite research that uses embryos left over at in vitro fertilization clinics. A total of 290 votes when all members of the House participate would be required to override the veto, so Castle’s bill fell about 50 short of that mark. A similar measure has 32 cosponsors in the Senate. If the Senate passes the same legislation, only a veto would prevent it from becoming law. In action immediately after Castle’s legislation was approved, the House voted 431-1 for the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act, which would authorize $79 million over five years for the collection, testing, and storage of stem cells from umbilical cord blood. It also would establish a network for doctors and patients to gain access to in an effort to find matches. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith (R.-N.J.), had the backing of the pro-life community. Stem cells are the body’s master cells that can develop into other cells and tissues, providing hope for the treatment of numerous afflictions. In addition to being extracted from embryos, the cells may be found in such non-embryonic sources as bone marrow, fat and placentas, as well as umbilical cord blood. In embryonic stem cell research, embryos in normally the first week of life are destroyed when stem cells are extracted from them. Privately funded research on embryonic stem cells is ongoing in the United States. Many scientists contend embryonic stem cells have more therapeutic potential than their non-embryonic counterparts. The strength of the pro-embryonic lobby’s claims is not evident in the priorities of the multi-billion-dollar biotechnology industry, which has invested many times more in non-embryonic stem cell research. Embryonic stem cell research has failed to produce any successful therapies in human beings and has been plagued by the development of tumors in lab animals. Meanwhile, research on stem cells from non-embryonic sources has produced treatments for at least 58 ailments, according to the National Right to Life Committee. These include spinal cord injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis and sickle cell anemia. Hours before the vote on the Castle bill, the President said in a speech that the legislation “would take us across a critical ethical line by creating new incentives for the ongoing destruction of emerging human life. Crossing this line would be a great mistake.” The president met before his speech with 21 families who either have adopted or given up for adoption frozen embryos stored after in vitro fertilization treatments. With children who were once frozen embryos in attendance at his speech, Bush said they “remind us that there is no such thing as a spare embryo. These lives are not raw materials to be exploited but gifts. And I commend each of the families here today for accepting the gift of these children and offering them the gift of your love.” In floor debate before the votes on the bills, Smith also pointed to the humanity of embryos in storage. The embryos stored in IVF clinics “are of infinite value to an adoptive mother who may be sterile or otherwise unable to have a baby,” he said. “I’ve met some of those kids. They’re not leftovers.... They’re just as human and alive and full of promise as other children. Let them be adopted.” Rep. Todd Akin (R.-Mo.), told other members of the House, “You and I were once embryos.... Embryos may seem like some scientific or laboratory term, but, in fact, the embryo contains the unique information that defines a person. All you add is food and climate control and some time, and the embryo becomes you or me.” |
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Minnesota Family Council / Minnesota Family Institute 2855 Anthony Lane South, Minneapolis MN, 55418-3265 Phone 612.789.8811, FAX 612.789.8858, www.mfc.org |