The Austin American-Statesman
Foes of stem cell research keep up pressure on Bush
By Jena Heath
American-Statesman Washington Staff
Wednesday, August 8, 2001

WASHINGTON -- President Bush is relaxing at his ranch
in Crawford this month, but opposition to stem cell research
hasn't taken a vacation.

A Who's Who of abortion-rights opponents has lined up
in the current issue of a conservative magazine to urge
Bush not to allow federal funding for research on stem
cells extracted from human embryos. And an anti-abortion
group, the American Life League, recently took out a
full-page newspaper advertisement pressuring Bush
to fulfill his campaign rhetoric opposing research that
involves the destruction of human embryos.

The campaign is being waged as polls show more
Americans in favor of the research.

In the Aug. 6 edition of Human Events magazine,
which calls itself the national conservative weekly,
Bush GOP primary opponent Gary Bauer, Family
Research Council President Ken Connor, Eagle
Forum President Phyllis Schlafly and other activists
threaten serious trouble for Bush in a re-election bid
if he allows federal funding for the research.
Bush has said he will make a decision before
Congress returns from its August recess.

"Any abdication by President Bush of his campaign
pledge to oppose embryonic research will fracture
his pro-life base, which was essential to his election
in the first place," Connor said in a Human Events
article titled "Pro-Lifers to Bush: Don't Flip on Embryo
Research." "It will absolutely inhibit his ability to
marshal the critical mass that he will need from his
base in order to be re-elected," Connor said.

Bauer compared Bush's upcoming announcement
to Bush's father's 1990 decision to raise taxes. That
decision, in part, is widely considered to have cost
the elder Bush re-election in 1992.

"No one would have asked in the elder Bush's
administration if a reversal of his 'Read my lips'
pledge would have severely hurt him with economic
conservatives," Bauer said. "Likewise,
social conservatives must be serious about
our values."

On July 31, the American Life League took out a
full-page ad in the Washington Times with the
headline: "The Bush Family Secret For One-Term
Presidencies."  The ad features a photograph
of Bush's father and the quote that helped seal
his re-election fate: "Read my lips! No new taxes!"
Beside the photo is a picture of then-candidate
George W. Bush stating his opposition to the research
last September. The ad strongly suggests that Bush
will face political consequences if he reverses that
position.

Atlanta pollster Q. Whitfield Ayers, a Republican,
said the two issues are not comparable.

"The 'Read my lips, no new taxes' pledge united
almost all of the Republican Party," Ayers said.
"It was seen as one of the main reasons why the
first President Bush was elected.

"The Republican base is not united on stem cell.
It is not one of the major reasons why the second
President Bush was elected, and it's an issue on
which thoughtful and sincere and honest people
can disagree within the Republican base," he said.

Ayers cited Sens. Orrin Hatch of Utah and Bill Frist
of Tennessee as two Republicans who are against
abortion rights but favor at least some form of stem
cell research.

"Most people are torn about what they think," Ayers
said.

The opponents' campaign comes as opinion
nationwide is swinging in favor of the research --
with important nuances. A USA Today/CNN/Gallup
Poll released Tuesday found that 55 percent of
Americans support federal funding for the research
on embryos that would otherwise be discarded
by fertility clinics. Sixty-eight percent supported
research on adult cells, a compromise some support
because it doesn't involve the destruction of human
embryos. Only 28 percent said they support research
on cloned cells.

Religious denominations are split. Last month,
Pope John Paul II told Bush that he should not allow
federal funding for the research. The Rabbinical Council
of America, which represents Orthodox Jews, wrote to
Bush expressing support for research on embryos that
otherwise would be destroyed.

Stem cell research shows promise in finding treatments
for diseases such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and
diabetes. More than 200 members of the House and
60 members of the Senate wrote to Bush last month,
urging him to support the research. Abortion-rights
opponents and religious conservatives oppose
it because embryos, which they consider incipient
human life, are destroyed.

In the current edition of Human Events, edited by
Terence Jeffrey, a former campaign manager for
Pat Buchanan, Reps. Walter Jones, R-N.C., and
John Shadegg, R-Ariz., caution Bush against allowing
federal funding for the research. Jones warns that Bush
could lose the support of Catholic voters in 2004,
a concern Bush political adviser Karl Rove has also
voiced behind the scenes.

Well aware of the enormous expectations surrounding
any decision he makes, Bush demurred Tuesday when
a reporter asked him if he is nearing a decision:  "I'll be
making that announcement when I'm ready to make
the announcement," Bush said.

Ayers said he believes that how Bush makes up his
mind is as important as what he decides.

"I think the key for the president is to be deliberate
and thoughtful . . . and then to make a compelling
case for why he comes down wherever he does,"
Ayers said. "Most people will respect that. Most people
will honor that and most people will be glad they weren't
the ones who had to make the decision."

Jena Heath can be reached at [log in to unmask]
or (202) 887-8324.

SOURCE:  The Austin American-Statesman
http://www.austin360.com/statesman/editions/today/news_2.html

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