The Progress Report: Wed, 13 Oct 2004

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Wed, 13 Oct 2004 09:00:35 -0700

Progress Report: The Stem-Cell Debate

" American Progress Action Fund "

<progress

 

 

The Progress Report.

 

by Christy Harvey, Judd Legum and Jonathan Baskin

OCTOBER 13, 2004

 

SCIENCE The Stem-Cell Debate

DEBATE Bush Can Run, But He Can't Hide

UNDER THE RADAR Go Beyond The Headlines

 

 

SCIENCE

The Stem-Cell Debate

 

Actor Christopher Reeve died this week, leaving behind a legacy

greater than his movie roles: since his life-altering accident in

1995, Reeve was a committed activist for the advancement of stem cell

research. Many scientists believe stem-cell research could one day be

used to treat spinal injuries as well as Alzheimer's, strokes, brain

injuries, Parkinson's, diabetes and heart defects. Unfortunately,

scientific advances have been stymied by the White House ban on

federal funds for the development of new stem-cell lines for new

research. Private companies and scientists abroad continue to make

advances; bowing to pressure from the far-right, however, President

Bush has limited federal funds to a handful of stem-cell lines created

before August 2001. Public opinion is increasingly in favor of

stem-cell research: a recent nationwide poll shows 53 percent of

Americans support the science. And it's one issue many people across

the ideological spectrum agree on. Sen. Orrin Hatch, the conservative

lawmaker from Utah, has been a strong proponent for stem cell

research, saying, " Being pro-life means helping the living. " First

Lady Nancy Reagan, Ron Reagan, and former Secretary of State Ed

Schultz have also become staunch advocates in recent years.

 

NEW ADVANCES: A huge reason to fight for a broader stem cell policy:

Scientists are continuously learning new ways these valuable cells can

be used. The cells have long been valued for their potential to

transform into any cells and tissue needed by the body. Just last

week, however, scientists reported the discovery that the cells " also

produce druglike compounds that can help ailing organs repair

themselves. " The scientists believe adult stem cells – which opponents

to embryonic stem cell research favor using for research – would not

able to produce these same chemicals. Other advances in only the past

month show the versatile cells can be used as " biological pacemakers "

and in fighting blindness.

 

LIMITED TO LINES THAT DON'T WORK: Scientists agree the stem cell lines

currently available for federal funds, all of which were created

before 2001, are tainted and inferior. These lines were developed

using mouse cells, which means they are considered contaminated and

will never be able to produce usable human therapies. In the past four

years, technology has advanced and new lines developed by private

companies have been grown without the use of mouse cells.

 

THE ETHICS TEST: Conservative Leon Kass, the chairman of the

President's Council on Bioethics, has defended banning the development

of new stem cell lines created after August 2001, saying it " upholds

important moral values. " As Elizabeth Whelan of the American Council

on Science and Health and Henry Miller of the Hoover Institution

argue, " if it is morally acceptable to use cell lines from embryos

created before that magical date, why is it not also right to create

stem cell lines from the estimated half-million unused, unwanted

fertility clinic embryos destined to be destroyed? " Embryonic stem

cells are found in the center of a " blastocyst, " a cluster of about

150 cells which forms a few days after the joining of a sperm and egg,

and are no larger than the period at the end of this sentence. To

obtain the cells, the blastocyst must be destroyed. Thousands of these

blastocysts are currently destroyed anyway; about 400,000 have been

created as part of in vitro fertilization. Once a couple becomes

pregnant, extra embryonic cells currently are incinerated. Kass

further buttresses his argument by proudly pointing out the

flourishing research conducted by private companies, which do use

embryos left over from in vitro fertilization.

 

NO FUNDING = NO REGULATION, NO SAY: Stem cell research in the private

sector and abroad is charging on, full-speed ahead. One result of

barring federal funds from being used to develop new stem cell lines

for research is to take any government oversight out of the equation.

Even Kass agrees on this point, writing, " it is a Pyrrhic victory to

keep the federal government out of certain activities, if the price of

such a stance means that worse practices are allowed to proceed

without oversight or regulation in the private sector. "

 

DEBATE

Bush Can Run, But He Can't Hide

 

In tonight's third and final debate, President Bush will have to

reckon with a sobering domestic record: 800,000 jobs lost; a $422

billion deficit; underfunded domestic programs; increased poverty for

three straight years. Bush campaign aides admit the president will

attempt to " broaden the faceoff, " skirting discussions of specifics –

" such as healthcare or education " – in favor of larger, ideological

issues, but that choice only underscores the administration's failure

to improve the lives of ordinary Americans. Hopefully, debate

moderator Bob Schieffer won't allow Bush to run away from his record –

below are some questions we'd like to see him ask the president.

 

QUESTION: Why have you prioritized tax cuts for the wealthy over

programs helping middle-class families? President Bush will say his

tax relief has helped the middle class, but domestic programs vital to

the middle class have been rolled back to pay for the cuts, the

benefits of which have gone overwhelmingly to the wealthiest 1 percent

of Americans. Bush's tax cuts for the richest 1 percent of Americans

this year alone will cost $148 billion. " That is twice as much as the

government will spend on job training, $6.2 billion; college Pell

grants, $12 billion; public housing, $6.3 billion; low-income rental

subsidies, $19 billion; child care, $4.8 billion; insurance for

low-income children, $5.2 billion; low-income energy assistance, $1.8

billion; meals for shut-ins, $180 million; and welfare, $16.9

billion. " (One Treasury economist with an insider's perspective on

President Bush's stewardship gives the president a failing D-.)

 

QUESTION: Will you veto Congress's " sprawling " corporate tax bill?

President Bush has said, " we've got to be wise about how we spend our

money in Washington, " but in four years he has not vetoed a single

spending bill, running up the biggest deficit in American history.

Now, he is expected to sign a " sprawling corporate tax bill " which

will " shower corporations and farmers in politically sensitive states

with about $145 billion worth " of subsidies and " pet tax breaks. " The

bill includes a $10 billion buyout for tobacco farmers, $27.9 billion

for corporations that earn profits abroad, $101 million for Nascar

race track owners, and $44 million for importers of Chinese ceiling

fans. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) called the bill " a disgrace " and

yesterday's Washington Post remarked, " If Mr. Bush cannot bring

himself to veto this terrible bill, it will be hard to take him

seriously. "

 

QUESTION: How will your " ownership society " help working families?

President Bush will likely tout his " ownership society, " but the

record shows Bush will continue to burden Americans with increased

risk and responsibility, while reducing the safety net that once

protected working families. To pay for the Bush tax cuts, the Los

Angeles Times reports, the programs Americans have relied upon to

buffer them from economic turmoil have been slashed or killed: " stable

jobs, widely available health coverage, guaranteed pensions, short

unemployment spells, long-lasting unemployment benefits and

well-funded job programs " have all been reduced or eliminated.

 

QUESTION: Why have you jeopardized affordable housing? President Bush

says, " For millions of our citizens, the American Dream starts with

owning a home, " but the White House has made achieving that dream more

difficult for more than 2 million – generally " poor, elderly, and

disabled " – Americans. The administration's 2005 budget calls for an

$800 million reduction in the Housing Choice Voucher Program, formerly

known as Section 8, and the White House has placed an artificial 1

percent cap on the annual rise in Section 8 grants, even though rents

rise by an average of 5 percent each year. It is the first time since

Section 8's inception the government has not promised to pay for the

full cost of the program.

 

QUESTION: Why should we trust you to reduce the debt in a second term?

President Bush has said, " I believe it is the job of a President to

confront problems, not pass them on to future Presidents and future

generations. " But Bush has turned a $5.6 trillion projected surplus

into $5.2 trillion projected deficit in just three years – the

turnaround represents the worst fiscal deterioration in at least the

last half century. The Washington Post wants the president to discuss

the " selfish, even piggish behavior today's leaders are showing toward

the next generation. "

 

 

Under the Radar

 

ECONOMY – MILLIONS OF WORKING FAMILIES LIVING IN POVERTY: According to

a non-partisan report released yesterday, " more than a quarter of all

working families in the United States, including 20 million children

are considered low-income or poor. " The study found significant " gaps

in federal and state efforts to help low-wage workers in such areas as

scholarships, adult education, and subsidized medical care. " More than

2.5 million working families " are officially living in poverty,

earning less than $18,392 for a family of four. "

 

SAUDI ARABIA – WOMEN NOT ALLOWED TO VOTE: The head of the Saudi

Arabian elections committee, Prince Mansour, said that " women will not

be able to participate in Saudi Arabia's first nationwide elections

because authorities in the strictly segregated country did not have

enough time to prepare for both sexes to run and vote. " Mansour " also

could not say whether women would be allowed to take part in the next

round of municipal elections in 2009, stressing that would be up to

the committee planning those polls. "

 

DELAY – ETHICS COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN THREATENED: The Hill reports, " House

ethics committee Chairman Joel Hefley (R-CO) said last week that

Republican lawmakers have threatened him in the wake of his panel's

recent admonishments of House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX). "

Hefley, who has issued two ethics committee admonishments, said, " I've

been attacked; I've been threatened. " Hefley refused to say " who or

how many of his colleagues had threatened him, or what retaliation had

been threatened. " Rep. Tom Feeney (R-FL) – a key DeLay ally – likened

Hefley " to a judge who dismisses drunk-driving charges but

nevertheless publicly berates the accused as an obnoxious and odious

driver. "

 

VOTING – FLORIDA MACHINES CRASH IN TEST: AP reports, " A public test of

Palm Beach County's electronic voting machines was postponed because a

computer server crashed. " Elections Supervisor Theresa LePore blamed

" a power failure during Hurricane Jeanne [that] caused temperatures in

the building to rise, which may have damaged computer equipment. "

Jeanne struck Florida two weeks ago.

 

TERRORISM – BUSH DOESN'T TRUST HIMSELF: Haaretz reports, " high-level

terrorism suspects are being held in a top-secret detention facility

in Jordan. " Bush had been so concerned about keeping their location a

secret, he told the CIA not to tell him where they were. Good thing he

doesn't read the news.