--------- Forwarded message ----------
FROM: The Washington Post, July 1, 2001
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6571-2001Jul1.html

Pressure for Stem Cell Funds Builds
By Ceci Connolly

President Bush, nearing a decision on whether to fund controversial
medical research using cells obtained from human embryos, is under
increasing pressure from prominent conservative Republicans who argue it
is possible to be both "pro-life" and "pro-stem cell."

In an unlikely twist, some of the same leaders who have consistently
championed the antiabortion cause in America are now in the vanguard of a
new political force.
"Stem cell research facilitates life," said Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah),
who studied the issue for two years before deciding to aggressively lobby
the Bush administration. "Abortion destroys life; this is about saving
lives."

Within the next few weeks, Bush is expected to decide whether to allow
scientists to use federal money for stem cell research. In a draft report
circulated last week, scientists from the National Institutes of Health
enthusiastically described the potential of the cells.

These tiny cells are typically obtained from early embryos that are
discarded at fertility clinics. Because embryonic cells can develop into
brain cells, liver cells and heart muscle cells, scientists say the work
could lead to breakthroughs on such diseases as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's
and diabetes. One group estimates that 100 million people suffer from
conditions that could be aided through stem cell developments.

Catholic leaders and many antiabortion activists are waging a fierce
campaign to prevent federally funded research. They argue that any work
on embryos; even those about to be discarded at fertility clinics; is
tantamount to the taking of a life.

"The idea that someone may otherwise be discarding the embryo anyway is
not relevant to the moral question for our government," said Richard
Doerflinger, an official with the National Conference of Catholic
Bishops. "Destroying an embryo in the lab is morally the same as abortion
in Catholic teaching."

Contrary to the perception that the stem cell debate is merely the latest
chapter in this nation's long argument over abortion, leaders such as
Hatch and former senator Connie Mack are proving that the political and
ethical calculus is far more complex.

"The most pro-life position would be to help people who suffer from these
maladies," Hatch said in an interview. "That is far more ethical than
just abandoning or discarding these embryonic stem cells."

For politicians such as Hatch, a Mormon, the decision to break with many
of their allies in the antiabortion community was closely tied to the
enormous medical potential of embryonic stem cells to treat a wide range
of debilitating conditions.

"I am just as pro-life today as I was before I had any knowledge of stem
cells," said Mack, a Florida Republican with close ties to Bush.

A Roman Catholic and cancer survivor, Mack holds firm to the view that
life begins at conception. But until recently, he said, "we didn't
imagine that an egg could be fertilized outside the uterus in a petri
dish or test tube." His beliefs have not changed, he explained, but they
have evolved to take into account new scientific discoveries.

In a 12-page memo to the administration, Hatch detailed his antiabortion
credentials: author of a constitutional amendment allowing states to
outlaw abortion, co-sponsor of the "Unborn Victims of Violence" bill and
reliable vote against federal support for abortion.

Hatch is hardly alone. In recent days, letters from the moderate House
Republican Main Street Coalition, Sen. Zell Miller, a conservative
Georgia Democrat, and 38 House Republicans have streamed into the White
House. The growing antiabortion, pro-stem cell contingent includes Rep.
Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Calif.) and Sens. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.) and
Gordon Smith (R-Ore.).

Advocates of embryonic stem cell research have found a warm reception at
the Department of Health and Human Services, where secretary Tommy G.
Thompson, an antiabortion Catholic, has made clear his sympathies. But
Thompson has also stressed that he is not the final arbiter, so several
lawmakers have made personal appeals to Vice President Cheney, White
House Chief of Staff Andrew H. Card Jr. and senior adviser Karl Rove.

According to two administration sources, Rove has become a major hurdle
in the process, fearful that supporting stem cell experiments will
alienate the crucial Catholic vote ; just as Bush prepares to visit Pope
John Paul II. Moderate Republicans such as Rep. Constance A. Morella
counter that the church hierarchy is not the same as rank-and-file
Catholics. A survey in her suburban Maryland district, along with
national polls conducted by ABC News and the Wall Street Journal, found
overwhelming support for the research, even among a majority of
Catholics.

At one time, Bush's team had hoped to scuttle Clinton administration
plans to support stem cell research quietly. But with the scientific
community, politicians and patients' rights groups touting the
life-saving potential of stem cells, Bush's decision is drawing more
attention, not less.

"We are spending a great deal of time studying not only the science, but
the ethical dimensions of this," a Bush strategist said. Although many in
the White House are impressed by the scientific data, there is also great
anxiety over the potential for "ethical precedents we can't even
anticipate," this source said.

Some in the administration are searching for a compromise that could
include investing more heavily in research on stem cells obtained from
adults, which do not require the destruction of embryos. Another option
would be to fund work on embryonic stem cell lines that have already been
harvested.

Unlike so many Washington debates, the future of embryonic stem cells is
an emotional, often personal, one.
"This is an issue that touches people's lives very directly and very
personally," Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said she told Rove in a White
House meeting. "It would be a mistake for the president to put himself in
a position where his decision might be interpreted as insensitive to the
suffering of families who have endured these devastating diseases."

Members of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation have patrolled the halls of
Congress and met recently with Cheney to plead for funding. Twice in
recent weeks, they have also flooded the White House telephone lines in a
bid for Bush's assistance. And Hatch said yesterday that stem cell
supporters are nearing the 60 votes in the Senate that would prevent a
filibuster.

For some, such as Mack and Miller, a direct experience with a
debilitating disease has influenced their thinking.

"I, too, have struggled with this issue," said Miller, who described in a
letter to Bush the pain in watching "family members struggle with
diabetes and other conditions that could greatly benefit from stem cell
research."

Mack began delving into science 13 years ago as cancer struck several
family members. From a public policy perspective, the issue of fetal
tissue research presented "the first time two fundamental principles were
in conflict," he recalled. Two factors have been critical to his
analysis: the life-saving potential of medical research and the knowledge
that in most instances, these embryos would be destroyed regardless.

During the campaign and in a recent letter to the antiabortion Culture of
Life Foundation, Bush spoke against "federal funding for stem cell
research that involves destroying living human embryos." But because
scientists would not necessarily be engaged in the destruction of
embryos, just the use of them, some stem cell advocates believe Bush has
maneuvering room.

GOP pollster Linda DiVall said Bush risks aggravating abortion opponents,
but he "would be given credit for wrestling with the moral implications
of this and understanding that while many people are conflicted, they
want to see lives saved in the future."

Though the road has been difficult, people such as Mack and Hatch say
once they reached a conclusion in support of stem cell research, it
seemed there was no other choice. As Hatch put it: "Why shouldn't we use
these cells for the benefit of mankind?"
---------------------------------------------
ALSO see this week's issue of Newsweek - the cover story, and a number of
other articles are on the stem cell issue.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask]
In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn