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GOP, Dem Senators Push for Vote on Stem Cell Research By Monisha Bansal CNSNews.com Staff Writer May 17, 2006 (CNSNews.com) - Seventy-two percent of Americans support embryonic stem cell research, according to the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research, while others call the use of embryos for research "murder." A bipartisan group of senators is using those numbers to push a Senate vote on the issue. "If it's brought up, we will pass it because the votes are there," said Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) during a Capitol Hill news conference Tuesday. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) added that "the longer we wait, the harder it will be to keep partisan issues out of this. It is not a Republican or Democrat issue." After a year to review the legislation, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) called the Senate's delay "inexplicable." The senators pushed for Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) to put the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act on the legislative calendar before May 24. Stem cells can be cultivated to form human tissue, which researchers say can help them treat cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injuries, heart disease and ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), among other conditions. While adult stem cells and stem cells taken from umbilical cord blood can also be used, Hatch said embryonic stem cells are more flexible and can grow into virtually any tissue. They have the "greatest promise of any stem cell research for finding cures," he said. But because embryonic stem cell research means destroying embryos, President Bush, backed by pro-life activists, decided in 2001 to restrict federal funding for research to the 60 stem cell lines that had already been created. The bill before the Senate (H.R. 810) passed the House almost a year ago and would allow unused embryos created for in vitro fertilization to be used for research instead of being destroyed. "It is unimaginable that we would discard 20,000 to 70,000 embryos as medical waste when they could be helping kids," said Hatch, referring to the possibility of stem cell use in treating juvenile diabetes. But Jim Sedlak, vice president of the American Life League, said the data about public support for stem cell research is misleading because most Americans are still confused over the different types of stem cells. "Most Americans don't understand that distinction" between embryonic and other types of stem cells, he said. "We are very disappointed that there are senators who are pushing this," Sedlak continued. "The nature of embryonic stem cells is that the human being must be killed in order to obtain the stem cells. We don't believe the government should be supporting the murder of innocent children, even in the embryonic stage. "Just because they are going to be discarded doesn't mean they're not human beings. These are human beings and they're entitled to respect, which means they shouldn't be killed and they shouldn't have research done on them," Sedlak told Cybercast News Service. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn