Contact: Shana Stribling 202.224.0309
Friday, August 10, 2001

“I support the President's decision to support federal funding for certain types of stem cell research. President Bush's speech was a thoughtful presentation that gave careful consideration to both the science and the ethics of the issue. As long as this research is carefully-regulated and is limited to existing stem cell lines, federal funding should go forward.

I also appreciate and fully support the President's call for a ban on the creation of human embryos specifically for research purposes and his call for a total ban on human cloning. These are radical departures from mainstream science. Cloning represents the extreme fringe of biomedical research and must be opposed so we maintain our basic concept of individuality. Further, these procedures must be banned to prevent the willy-nilly creation of human life for selfish purposes. We must not let an open door for responsible and limited stem cell research become a floodgate for irresponsible and unethical research. I fear that the critics of the President's balanced proposal want to lead us down this dangerous path.”