House to Vote on Stem Cell Research Bills - Yahoo! News
I would love to see this pass and have Bush veto it. This would put the "Christian agenda" up front and personal for a lot of people who are afflicted with the diseases that this research could help.

WASHINGTON - Two bills that would loosen restrictions on stem cell research take center stage in the House, with disease victims pleading for help and President Bush vowing to veto legislation he says would let science destroy life to save life.

"This is not an easy vote for many Republicans ... and some Democrats, too, because you have pro-life and other arguments," said the sponsor of the more controversial bill, Rep. Mike Castle, R-Del. "There's a lot of tide against them voting for it."

If I'm not mistake, that statement is complete and total bullshit. The last I heard, the public was overwhelmingly in favor of this research. If they are afraid to vote for it because of a rabid minority of people, then they are cowards who are hurting the rest of us.

Before voting takes place Tuesday, Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas was to speak. Like Bush, DeLay, who is known for enforcing discipline on Republican ranks, is opposed to the bill by Castle and Diana DeGette, D-Colo.

The Castle-DeGette bill would lift Bush's 2001 ban on new federally funded research on embryonic stem cells, a process that requires the destruction of human embryos.

Another bill sponsored by Reps. Chris Smith, R-N.J., and Artur Davis, D-Ala., has wide bipartisan support and backing from Bush. It would provide $79 million in federal money to increase the amount of umbilical cord blood for stem cell research and treatment and establish a national database for patients looking for matches.

Many lawmakers said they planned to vote for both stem cell research bills Tuesday.

Decrying science that destroys life to prolong other life, Bush last week promised to veto the Castle-DeGette bill, and some lawmakers were taking note.

The sponsors, who have been counting votes for weeks, predicted the bill would garner the 218 votes needed for passage but fall short of the 290 votes needed to sustain a veto.

The votes of about 20 members of both parties still were up for grabs, Castle said.

Driving the debate over these bills is deep emotion behind the promise — disputed in some camps — that stem cell research could provide treatment and perhaps cures for diseases as diverse as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and childhood diabetes.

Yes, we all know how sacred "life" is to this President. *cough*