The most significant decision
about stem cell research was made
by President George Bush on
August 9, 2001. He chose to allow
federal funds for research purposes
to all existing stem cell lines as of
that date and to deny support to
any new lines. By doing so the
president attempted to avoid
taking sides in the stem cell debate
and instead to create a solution
of compromise for all the parties
involved.
The reason President Bush
needed to make a decision was
because of increasing debate between
proponents and opponents to the issue.
Stem cell researchers wanted to
expand funding and open up new stem cell
lines, while many right-wing and pro-life
organizations wanted all federal funding
to stop. The latter groups pushed President
Bush to fulfill what they believed to be
a campaign promise of continued faith-
based initiatives.
Unfortunately
President Bush's decision to keep the number
of stem cell lines stagnant was such a compromise that it did not
satisfy either side of the debate. Stem cell and bio-medical
researchers were disappointed with the result because they
feel that they would need many more cell lines to be
developed for future research. Proponents of stem
cell research, although relieved that President Bush
did notban the research all together, are unsure if
the restrictions mandated by the policy will allow
for any medical or scientific progress to occur at all.
On the other side, many opponents
of stem cell research
were also dissatisfied with the decision. This included many
anti-abortion groups who believe that the stem cell research
process which involves destroying embryos is an immoral
practice. These groups were under the impression that
President Bush had made promises during his campaign
to support faith-based initiatives, which include the banning
of stem cell research. Like the proponents of the issue,
these opponents were also somewhat relieved by President
Bush's decision, but for a different reason. Because they did
not want to see an expansion in stem cell lines, the opposition
supported the president's restriction on the number of lines available
for research.
The congressional response was rather
mixed towards Bush's decision. The congress on a whole seemed to support
a somewhat broader policy (one that would allow for the creation of some
new stem cell lines) than the president's. Many of the Democrats supported
Bush's decision to extend federal funding to stem cell research; however,
the Republicans were not completely unified either in opposition to or
support for the issue. For instance, Arlen Specter, a Republican senator
is in support of more federal funding for stem cell research and he has
even tried to add amendments on to new spending bills. Other more conservative
congressman rejected these amendments and in response to the anticipated
debate, Congress has agreed to wait and engage in further discussions
at a later date. As this issue most prominantly entered the Congressional
arena in August of 2001 (and was delayed due to the events of the following
month) , it will most likely be revisited sometime before the end of this
year.
The decision by President Bush can
be described as both an incremental and drastic change. Debate concerning
this decision had been building for since time, and there had been conflicts
between interest groups and within the Bush administration long before
the final decision was made. People knew to some degree what to expect
from the President, because he had intimated some of his opinions during
his campaign and first year in office. While the change was incremental,
in that the policy had been debated over for some time prior to its implementation,
the result of the decision was a little more drastic. It affected researchers
greatly because they had to stop research or plans for research due to
the changes in the availability of stem cell lines. Because the situation
set a specific date, the policy's results were easily definable. However,
there is still great debate and disagreement concerning the issue that
will probably cause changes in the policy in the future.
The future holds many new decisions
and possibilities for stem cell research. It seems that researchers and
scientists gain more support from politicians and the public everyday.
Broader stem cell research is still generally supported by most of the
liberals in Congress and there continues to be some more conservative
support. Along with Senator Specter, mentioned earlier, Republican Orrin
Hatch has emerged as a supporter of stem cell research and increased stem
cell lines. This is significant given, Senator Hatch's reputation as being
a staunch conservative and a pro-life advocate. If the issue of stem cell
research continues to gain support there will be a lot of pressure, political
and otherwise, placed on President Bush to modify his stance. Although
it is expectated that in the future more stem cell lines will be given
federal funds in order to provide for medical breakthroughs, most likely
it will be awhile before this issue finds a semi-permanent equilibrium
point in either the public or political arena.
