Buh?
WASHINGTON - Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist on Friday threw his support behind House-passed legislation to expand federal financing for human embryonic stem cell research, breaking with President Bush and religious conservatives in a move that could impact his prospects for seeking the White House in 2008.
"It's not just a matter of faith, it's a matter of science," Frist, R-Tenn., said on the floor of the Senate.
Guh?
At the White House, press secretary Scott McClellan said Frist had given Bush advance notice of his announcement. "The president said, `You've got to vote your conscious,'" McClellan said.
(Something tells me that's a 100% accurate quote)
A heart-lung transplant surgeon who opposes abortion, Frist said loosening Bush's strict limitations on stem cell research would lead to scientific advances and "bridge the moral and ethical differences" that have made the issue politically charged.
"While human embryonic stem cell research is still at a very early stage, the limitation put into place in 2001 will, over time, slow our ability to bring potential new treatments for certain diseases," the Tennessee lawmaker said in his speech.
"Therefore, I believe the president's policy should be modified. We should expand federal funding ... and current guidelines governing stem cell research, carefully and thoughtfully, staying within ethical bounds," he said.
Muh?
The announcement came the same week that a group of supporters for the research, StemPAC, launched a television ad in New Hampshire criticizing Frist for not scheduling a vote on the issue. Frist added on Friday that he expected debate and a vote when the Senate returns from vacation in the fall.
With those political realities in mind, Frist argued that his positions on stem cell research and abortion were not inconsistent. He said the decision was about policy, not politics.
Zuh?
*sputtering* What... what is this.. Bizarro world??
Update: Pam has the Freeper reaction. It's priceless.
(Oops, I cross-posted again)
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